The Search
by Plastic Emotion
Summary: [COMPLETED]After receiving some bad news, the GGs start cleaning out their garage. While doing that, four of them find a certain clue that just might save their home. But in order to do that, a puzzle must be solved...
1. We're What?

**The Search**

Summery: After hearing some bad news, the GGs start cleaning out their garage. While doing that, four of them find a certain clue that just might save their home.

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Prologue

_...Deep in the heart of Tokyo-To lives a legend of teenagers destined to find freedom within their oppressed world. To some, they are trouble-making gangs that only wish to terrorize the very streets they walk on. To others, they are the ones to break the chains of unfairness and spread the spirit of life that's in us all. But, somehow, some way, darkness seems to find them..._

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We're What?!

"Potts, go fetch the mail."

"Man, how lazy can you get?"

"Shut up! I'm teaching him a new trick!"

"Yeah, like he's gonna learn in one day."

The boy lying on the couch rolled on his stomach and looked at his dog that was resting on the floor next to him. He pulled his blue hood off his head and adjusted his shades that were sliding down his nose, reflecting the afternoon sun. The entire garage that he happened to be in was covered in a yellow-orange glow that tired him out by just looking at it. "C'mon Potts, get the mail."

The young man to the boy's left shook his head, making the radio balancing on his shoulder wobble, "I told you to get it. Not the dog." His tall, large figure cast an enormous shadow over his friend, making him look up easily. "All right, all right, keep ya hair on." he muttered, getting up and glancing at his dog, "You're a _real_ smart dog." At cue, Potts leaped on the couch, snagging the boy's pillow, and ran away with it.

"You're right, Yoyo. He _is_ a smart dog." laughed his friend, taking Yoyo's spot on the couch. "Whatever..." he mumbled, walking to the entrance of the garage where the mail hanger was. Grabbing the mail, he skated to the 'kitchen' counter and dumped the pile there. He took a stool and sat, yawning. "Hey Yoyo, anything new today?" asked his friend, zooming past him and grabbing a letter. "Obviously. There's mail on the counter isn't there?" he answered grumpily.

The teen looked at him grimly and took off his strangely shaped headphones to fix the volume. "Did Combo wake you up to get the mail again?" he smirked. "Duh!" remarked Yoyo, rubbing his eyes. "Yeah well, you are kinda lazy." "And I would get better at it if he didn't wake me up!"

Yoyo stared at his friend grimly as the other burst into laughter. "Hey Beat, weren't you going to check the mail?!" Beat stopped laughing and opened the letter, still wearing a smirk. His joy quickly disappeared as he read the letter in his hands. "What's up?" asked Yoyo, reaching for the paper, but Beat wouldn't let him. "Oh crap!" he muttered, running a hand through his auburn hair making it stick up a little.

"What?"

"This isn't good..."

"What?!"

"I gotta find Corn..."

"WHAT?!"

"What's what?" asked a soft voice behind him. Yoyo spun the seat around to see a girl who was mostly blue all over except for her skin, "Whacha yelling for?" Yoyo crossed his arms sullenly, "Beat's going crazy over that letter and he won't let me read it!" The girl whose name was Rhyth skated over to Beat and read over his shoulder. She clasped a hand over her mouth, "Oh...no..."

Yoyo glared at them, "Do ya mind lettin me in on the secret, yo?!" The ignored his statement and rushed in opposite directions, looking for others. Yoyo placed his elbows on the counter and sighed, "Whatever..."

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"We're what?!" asked Boogie, unable to understand the notice. "Can you believe this!?" agreed Gum, bobbing her helmeted head. Beat ran into a tall figure, knocking him down. "Slow down, Beat!" he mumbled, returning his hat to his head. "Corn! Here! This! Read this!" Beat fumbled, tossing the already wrinkled paper at the GG's leader. "What's this?" Corn muttered, reading the very tiny print.

"Residents of this unauthorized zone...sadly understand...foreclosure...unofficial residency...a week!" Corn's eyes grew double their normal size and his expression transformed quickly into an angered fury of rage, "What?!"

He stood up, shaking his head and read it a second time. "They can't be serious! Since when did we need a payment on this place?!" Beat shrugged, "I didn't even know someone knew we hung out here!" Corn folded the letter up, "Where's the envelope it came in?" Beat pointed, "On the counter next to Yoyo."

Corn sped over, tossing the other letters on the floor. "Hey Corn." greeted Yoyo with a mouthful of cereal. Corn shuffled through the envelopes, not having any luck finding the item. "What ya looking for?" asked Yoyo, grabbing another handful of cereal from the box. "The envelope this letter Beat had came in." he answered, looking up after a minute, "You see it?"

"Oh that? Yeah, it's on the floor next to you."

Corn glanced on the floor and found it. "What's the big deal on that anyway!? Nobody tells me anything!" Yoyo whined, following Corn. "We're being evicted."

"Say what?!"

"You heard me."

Yoyo tossed the cereal box and stared at Corn, "But we won't have anywhere to go!"

"I know, but we hang out here and the people who sent us the bill are gonna tear this place down if we don't pay up."

"Oh that's just bull crap, yo!" Yoyo fumed. "I know." By the time Corn returned to Beat, the entire garage had heard the bad news. They gathered around Corn asking various questions. "Well, how much do they want?" asked Jazz, tossing her loose scarf over her shoulder. Corn glanced at the paper, "A million."

Most of the gang yelled out, "What?!" "Why?" piped up Garam. "Because they wanna build some mall or building here and it'll cost that much to make it!" said Corn scornfully.

Gum crossed her arms, "But that doesn't make sense! If we did pay up, that would fund the process!" "Yeah, but here it says if the money is given, it'll stop the eviction because it'll officially be our land under an authorized title." answered Corn. "They're giving us a week to pay up or get out..."

"How are we gonna come up with that much cash?" muttered Rhyth, hugging herself. "Jobs?" suggested Yoyo, shrugging. "Two reasons for the answer no. One, you're too lazy and wouldn't be able to keep one and two, no matter what job we get, we'll never have enough time to make enough." commented Combo. "It was a _suggestion_!" growled Yoyo. "Yeah, but Combo's right. We're gonna have to get outta here..." sighed Clutch. "Better start packing..." heaved Soda, breaking them all up to start. "Corn?" called Cube, making her way to the front. "Hm?" "Who's evicting us?" He lifted the envelope to show a G fist. The sign of Rokakku.

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"It's not fair! We've been here as long as Corn started this gang and we've never had this problem before!" whined Yoyo as he moved a box into a corner. "Does this mean...the gang is over?" whispered Rhyth, glancing at the three that were with her. "No! Don't say that! Don't ever say that!" warned Yoyo, dropping a box. "Careful with that stuff, Yoyo!" huffed Beat, carrying one himself.

"Don't worry guys, we'll find another place to go." assured Gum, picking up the items from the box Yoyo had dropped, "This is just a way that Rokakku is _trying_ to break us up." No one answered this comment. Rhyth opened another closet, the garage seemed to be filled with them, and started to take things down. A squeaky toy fell and rolled to Yoyo's feet. He picked it up and smiled, "Hey! Potts' first toy! This thing is old, yo! It's kinda..." he slowed mid-sentence and tossed it to Potts.

It felt like they were all moving from their beloved home. "So where are we actually going after we leave?" asked Rhyth, bringing back life to the emptiness. didn't really say..." started Beat, wiping a brow. "No matter what place it'll be, it can't replace what we had here." she sighed, sitting on a box.

"Rhyth, for all our sakes, can't you at least try to be somewhat positive?" muttered Gum, glancing at her. Rhyth leaned her head on her arm. She was going to miss this place, filled with so many memories. Every day was a new adventure. She knew the way she thought of past made it sound like a fairy tale, but that's the way she felt about everything and besides, it was _her_ feelings.

Beat passed her, noticing her depression. Knowing how emotional she was, he said nothing to her for she looked like any word would make her cry. He reached for some junk on the top shelves over his head and some things began to fall. "Avalanche!" joked Yoyo as the shelf snapped, spilling everything on Beat.

Beat shook his head, "Ow." "You okay?" asked Gum, helping him up. "Yeah..." he muttered, kicking his way out. Yoyo left and returned with a large garbage bag, "Junk ahoy!" Rhyth suddenly shot up. "Wait! We can give the extra skates and stuff to the collection offices."

"That's Rhyth for ya." smiled Beat, sorting the broken items and the used ones. "And who's gonna bring the stuff down to the collection offices, Rhyth?" asked Yoyo grimly, remembering the pain like it was yesterday. "I will!" she smiled happily. "All, now what? Four of them?" he continued, closing the latest bag.

Rhyth put her arms behind her back and giggled, "Well since you're practically offering, sure you can help, Yoyo!" He looked up at her, "Oh no I'm not! Do you remember the back pains I had from the last time you cleaned out your room?!" She laced her hands in a begging manor and pouted, "Oh please, Yoyo? Please? Please? Please? Please? _Please_?"

She knew it was wrong, but guilt sucking was the only way to make him say yes. He ground his teeth annoyed, "Fine!" Her personality suddenly changed from groveling to jittery. "Thank you!" she said, giving him a grateful hug. "I know I'm gonna regret this later..." he sighed.

Beat lifted the last bag over to Yoyo. "Done for the bags. Now we need a trash bag." Gum left them to retrieve one while Yoyo searched through the stuff. "What is this junk?" he asked, looking at a broken snow globe. "Garbage." shrugged Beat, "We just never knew it existed." A box about half the size of a shoebox caught Yoyo's attention. "Ooo, what's that?"

Beat grabbed it and shook it, "I dunno." Yoyo pointed at it, "Open it!" Beat lifted the lid of the box, creating a puff of dust to shoot at his face. He sneezed and reached in. Only a paper and a strange looking key. He gave them to Yoyo, who seemed eager to see. "What is it?" asked Rhyth, wondering what the boys were up to. "Some kinda riddle." answered Yoyo, "From seas thy shinings-" "Yoyo, we got a lot of work to do. We'll listen later." said Beat.

"Sure..." yawned Yoyo, pocketing the old paper.

* * *

**Author's Note**: Hey there, I'm trying this working on two fics at once so I'll have more time to write more thing. My friend says it's good for the blood. (like she knows) Anyway, hopefully high school won't get in the way of my writing! Enjoy and note any problems to make my story better for you. 


	2. Coincidence?

Coincidence? 

"I told you I was gonna regret helping you!" moaned Yoyo, clutching his back. "Oh it wasn't that bad!" debated Rhyth, shaking her head. "You were carrying one out of six bags!" Yoyo fumed.

He sat on one of the safety bars near the stores and regained his energy. Dogenzaka Hill was much quieter in the noon, but there was still plenty of people hanging around. "Don't you feel good about helping others?" asked Rhyth, sitting next to him. He glanced at her grimly, "Don't push it."

She sighed and looked at her hands. For some reason, she could never really connected with the way Yoyo thought sometimes. It was like she was on some other world. "_I should've helped with more bags..._" she thought to herself, "_But he wouldn't let me..._" She glanced at him and smiled, "_It was pretty cool how he could carry that many, though..._" Yoyo yawned and stretched painfully.

"Hey guys. Have a nice trip, Yoyo?" laughed a familiar voice. They both looked to the side, watching Beat and Gum race pass people making them shout, agitated. "Oh yeah. It was jolly and everything." Yoyo mocked, grinning madly. Rhyth glared at him and he stopped with a smirk. "So, did you two run away from the work?" asked Rhyth, tilting her head. Gum rolled her eyes, "I wish. Just taking a short break."

Yoyo shifted himself and his pocket cracked. Gum and Rhyth looked at him strangely and he pulled out the paper. "Totally forgot about this, yo." he said, unfolding it. Beat skated to Gum's side after he had been graffiting the wall. "Oh it's that paper thing." he acknowledged, grabbing it. "Careful with that! It's really old!" fussed Yoyo, standing up.

"Here. Read us your precious paper." said Beat, giving it back to him. Yoyo held the sheet to his face because the writing was so small,

"From seas thy shinings glow as dawn,

And dreams evolve, yet have no yawn.

Thy maiden of thy center be pure,

Of where her honest point is sure.

The travel of a boy might go,

Ending in a one-man show.

Fifty and fifty,

Watch the knife,

Greed will battle for your life."

"Oh, that sounds like those pirate codes." smiled Rhyth. "I think it sounds like some drunk dude who was trying to write a poem." snickered Beat, sitting on the bars. "Whaddya think it means?" asked Yoyo, trying to figure it out, "Maybe a treasure or somethin?" Beat ruffled his light green hair, "Don't stress it, you might blow your brain."

"Why was it in the garage?" he asked again. Beat shook his head. Once Yoyo got into something, he wasn't going to shut up until he got what he wanted. "Because someone owned the garage before we had it." Beat answered, "Now, put the thing away and let's get back to the garage." Yoyo sighed, "Fine...fine..." He reread the paper and put it back in his pocket.

Leaning on the wall, he wondered what he was going to do when their week was up. The streets would be a bad idea since the cops were rampaging through them, marking territory with yellow tape as if it was their own. There was no way in any lifetime that one of the other gangs would let them in for a few weeks. The GGs were the tops and going into another's hideout would end up in a fight or worse.

Not like they would enjoy staying with them either. Poison Jam was done with now that Cube had joined the GGs and no one was going to stay in that dank, smelly, pipe they called home, except maybe Cube. The Immortals? Forget it. They were worse than Poison Jam. The Love Shockers were psychos and the Doom Riders were perverts when it came to girls. Yoyo wouldn't mind staying with the Rapid 99 girls, but the GG girls might have too many fights over guys and whatnot.

The Noise Tanks were far from any choice the GGs would make and that would be the last choice. No one else. As Yoyo thought about all these random ideas, he stared mindlessly at the Dogenzaka Hill statue that at one time had been missing. It was an interesting piece of work. The woman had one arm hugging herself and the other behind her hair. Three of her fingers were out of a grip, but her index was out the most.

Yoyo lifted an eyebrow as he took out the paper once again and reread. "Thy maiden of thy center..." he muttered. He glanced left and right. The statue seemed to be in the center, just as the riddle described. "Hey Rhyth!" he called. She was the most suitable to ask the question without yelling at him to forget the annoying paper. "Does the goddess look like she's in the middle?" he asked.

"Of what?"

"Of the street, you know like from across?"

Rhyth tilted her head and nodded, "Yes." She watched him carefully. "This isn't some sort of trick right?"

"No. Now, does it look like she's pointing to something?"

Rhyth closed one eye and positioned herself like the statue. "Mmm...that way." Rhyth wiggled her finger in the same direction the statue was pointing. "Wait..." she suddenly said, "This is about that riddle isn't it?" Yoyo grinned sheepishly, "Well..." "Yoyo, it's probably some joke or something. Don't believe in it." she sighed.

Yoyo held out his hands, "Aw Rhyth! When's the last time you connected with your inner child and pretended about things that didn't exist?" Rhyth glanced at him sadly. When was he going to grow up? "A long time ago." He made a superman pose, "Exactly! Let's just have some fun for the heck of it!"

"Yoyo, you're sixteen going on seven."

"What _is_ taking you guys so long?"

The two turned their heads the same way. "Here he comes to wreck the day..." Yoyo huffed. Beat slid to them with Gum at side, "We were about to head into the garage by the time we noticed you were gone." "We didn't follow you from the start." snickered Yoyo. Gum ignored Yoyo's answer and came forward. "What's keeping you?"

"Yoyo wants to play pretend." Rhyth answered innocently. Yoyo looked at her with pity. She could be so honest sometimes it killed him. It really did. "Aww, isn't that cute? But we have work to do?!" cried Beat annoyed. "Yeah, yeah...I know..." agreed Yoyo. He pushed himself off the wall with his elbows and began skating with the rest, just before glancing at the statue one last time.

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"I deserve a break!"

"Don't we all?"

"I carried bags out for Rhyth!"

"Well then tell your _girlfriend_ that next time you won't be able to do it!"

"She's not my girlfriend!"

"Then _shut up_!"

Beat sat down wearily on the couch. Taking a whine from Yoyo was as bad as getting your hand stuck in a blender. There was a sudden sharp bang against his head, making it jet forward a little. The small broken wheel rolled around until it stopped flat. Beat spun around in his seat, glaring at Yoyo. "I'll shut up when I want to!" Beat stood up frustrated, this kid just wouldn't stop!

"THEN WANT TO!"

"MAKE ME!"

"OH YOU'LL BE QUIET WHEN I RIP YOUR VOCAL CORDS OUT!" erupted Beat, charging at Yoyo. They rammed into each other, punching, beating, and choking each other, trying to cause more pain to the other as much as possible. They knocked down all the neat piles they had been working on for hours and ripped the few bags of garbage that were lying around.

Gum and Rhyth opened the entrance gate and skated in, laughing over a good joke and walked in on the fight. "Hey guys, we brought the...pi...zza..." started Gum, slowing her announcement as she watched the hopeless two knock each other down.

"Great, I'll be over as soon as I'm done with him!" said Beat, holding Yoyo in a headlock. Rhyth glanced back at the two on her way to the counter, "Shouldn't we try to...stop them?" Gum looked at her seriously, "And risk our health for theirs?" Rhyth opened the box, taking a slice for herself. It was suddenly snatched from her hands, as she was about to take a bite, "Thanks Rhyth!"

"Yoyo!"

She picked up another and Beat took it gently, "Fighting makes you hungry!" Rhyth leaned her elbow on the counter and rested her cheek in her palm hopelessly. "You're welcome..." she mumbled.

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A while after, Yoyo cleaned his hands on his shorts and took out his ancient riddle again. It was times like this when he could use something to keep him busy. Being in the garage made him depressed and heartbroken, although he wouldn't show it.

Riddles like the one he was trying to solve made him frustrated because one hundred percent of the time, he could never solve them. He scratched his head thoughtfully, already becoming annoyed. "What the heck does it mean?" he said quietly.

"You don't give up, do you?"

Yoyo looked over his shoulder. "Oh hey Gum." She leaned on the pillar near him and crossed her arms. "You'll never change."

"I hope not." he grinned. "What's so interesting about that stupid thing?" she asked, taking it from him and skimming through it. "I think I _might've_ got the first part." he said with a smile. "You must be so proud." she responded sarcastically, tossing it back.

He noted the intake of sarcasm and stayed quiet, wondering. "Well?"

He glanced up, "Well what?"

"You said you had the answer."

"I said I might." he corrected. Gum shrugged, "Whatever," Yoyo stood up and followed the words with his finger as he read, "Thy maiden of thy center be sure, of where her honest point is pure." Gum followed on, "Okay?" Yoyo folded the paper and faced her. "You know the statue in Dogenzaka Hill?"

"Yeah?"

"Well, it's a girl."

Gum gave him a grave stare, "You don't have to tell _me_ that."

"Anyway, she's in the middle of the street and it really looks like she's pointing to something!"

Gum smiled and let out a light laugh, "You've put that mind to work, huh?" Yoyo rubbed his head, "Well, I guess. I wasn't really paying attention when I thought of it, but I have a witness! Ask Rhyth! She'll tell ya!" "So you're planning to play pirates?" Gum mocked jokingly. Yoyo stared at her. No one was going to take him seriously. Not now, not ever!

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"I'll be there in a sec!" called Rhyth, sitting on the couch taking a quick rest. The sun was already sinking into the horizon and it was such a beautiful view. She loved how the reds and oranges blended into the yellows and pinks, eventually creating a dark purple and blue of night. It filled her heart with joy to capture such a romantic moment and she hoped one day to share it with someone special.

She wasn't exactly sure of what made a sunset romantic, but she felt within her soul that it was the time spent together. She blinked as she realized her name was being called once again, breaking her away from her peaceful thoughts. "Coming!" she said, getting up. As she passed the bathrooms, she was yanked sideways by her arm. "What the-"

"Shh!"

"What's the matter, Yoyo?" she asked, her nerves naturally responding with worry. "Calm down! You look like someone got hit by a car!" She crossed her arms, "I do not!"

"_Anyway_," he brushed off, "Do you wanna help me solve that riddle thing?"

Rhyth put her hands on her forehead, "Yoyo..." He waved his hands innocently, "I just need someone who can give helpful suggestions!" "Yoyo, you should be helping to clean this place out."

"C'mon! I did you a favor!"

Rhyth was about to object, but he was right. He was always doing favors for her. "How long will this take?" she sighed. He grinned happily and motioned for her to follow.

00000

Author's Note: Um, nothing good to say here. Honestly. Just tell me what you think. Some people have no problem with that and it just makes my stories better.


	3. It Starts

**It Starts**

Darkness surrounded two teens as they skated noisily into the streets, not disturbing many except only by existing. The only luminous object near them was the moon, shining its spooky glow for all to enjoy. "I feel like we're skipping out on chores…" said Rhyth after a while. "Don't you ever have the urge to just do your own things?" asked Yoyo annoyed. She stayed quiet. Her motion was to go with the flow, most times.

They entered in the ally and up to the statue. Yoyo looked at it glumly. The tall buildings were casting large shadows, covering them and the statue. He couldn't fully focus on the way she was pointing. "Hey Rhyth?" Yoyo called. No answer. "Rhyth?" He looked both ways, but she was no where in sight.

"Rhyth?! Where are ya?!"

A couple of signs moved from his right and Rhyth stepped out from them, "You calling me?" Yoyo looked at her grimly, "No, I was mumbling your name to catch the essence of it." She stared at him confused and shrugged. "Oh…okay." The boy slapped his head and rolled behind her, pushing her lightly through her shoulders, "That was called _sarcasm_, Rhyth. People use it when they don't really mean what they mean." "I know what it means! I'm not stupid!" she protested, crossing her arms.

"Yeah…" started Yoyo, but shut up at Rhyth's glare. "Do you want my help or not, because I can just turn around and go back to the garage…"

"Okay, okay! Sorry!" he apologized, facing her to him, "Can you point like the statue was pointing?" She gave him a curious eye, "Why?" He took a step back, "Because my life is at stake if you don't." She gave him the same glare and he sighed, "I can't see which way it exactly is."

She thought for a minute and then copied the position of the statue, "Remind me to shove a bar of soap down your throat." He smiled, "That'd be interesting." She put her arms down and drew a breath of air, "I hate favors…" The girl walked to where she had been before and left Yoyo to figure out where to go next from his little puzzle.

Sitting at the edge of the roof, she looked out ahead at all the lights from the shops and smiled. Lights of the city had always made her feel at home and it warmed her when she felt lonely or depressed. She was longing for a new home now, and there was no idea of what was going to happen next. Rhyth silently prayed that no matter what, her friends would always stick together.

"You chose the oddest times to walk out on me, you know that?"

Rhyth shook her head and turned away from the lit view, "Huh? Oh…yeah…" "Are you done staring at people shopping?" he asked jokingly. Rhyth disregarded the tease and asked one in return, "Yoyo, how can you ignore what's happening?" His grin dropped, "What do you mean?"

She looked back at the lights, "Well, you're acting like this is an everyday thing for you." "I can't _ignore_ what's gonna happen in the future, but I'm trying to forget it from my mind in the present with solving this riddle!" he answered, "Now c'mon, we gotta head down." He took a few steps back and zoomed off the roof onto the next one and below. Rhyth followed, "Where're we going?"

"I dunno, where ever the point's pointing."

"What?!"

"Just c'mon."

They zigzagged in and out of crowds, causing screams, shouts, and some old woman to throw a can at them. "Watch out for raining bean cans…" muttered Yoyo as he rubbed his head. They soon were far from the city's hustle and bustle, in the middle of wasteland. It was extremely dark without the city's lights and life. Mysterious shadows evolved from unknown things lying about and larger ones from stay animals and two humans that were loitering around the area. The smell that aroused from the dirt and garbage was a horrible stench of rot and a possible decaying of some corpse.

As for the darkness, it wasn't possible to see your own hand in front of your face and even the moon's glow seemed to have burnt out somewhat. One of the trespassers nervously put a hand to her cheek, "Yoyo, I think we made a wrong turn or something…we should head back or more, head to the garage." She stumbled over a large object and didn't have the courage to look down, "Yoyo, you hear me?"

The girl stopped walking and listened for any life besides her own. Her fear slipped into her hands, making them shake uncontrollably, "Yoyo!? Stop it! This isn't funny!" A sudden laugh of hysteria broke the dead silence, "Oh, _I_ think it is." Rhyth felt the anger within her rise, "You jerk!" "Aw, what's the matter Rhyth? Afraid of the dark?" he snickered. Rhyth threw a punch to her left.

"OW!"

"You deserved it."

Yoyo rubbed his shoulder, "Little whiney pain in the ass…" Rhyth spun around, "Excuse me?" "I said you're the best person in the whole world 'cus you're helping me!" he said sweetly. She looked up at the dim moon. "That's what I thought you said."

Yoyo followed her footsteps, "Geez Rhyth, do you always suddenly get tough when you're scared or do you just like me?" Rhyth stopped walking in a jolt and Yoyo knocked into her, falling, "You wish!" He stood up, dusting himself off, "Oh definitely. Out of all the girls I'd choose from, you think I'd want _you_? _Please_."

Rhyth watched his silhouette in front of her, "Something to consider, Yoyo. Out of all the girls you would choose from, how many would choose _you_? Not many to choose from now is there?" Yoyo curled his fingers into fists heatedly, "That's a little below the belt doncha think? Let's try to keep the gloves up, Tyson." Rhyth smirked, knowing for sure she had won the argument unless Yoyo had some immature comeback which he didn't so they continued, not sure of where to go.

After feeling enough time had gone by without talking, Rhyth brought up a question to see if Yoyo was still with her, "Where are we going? This is meaningless and a waste of my life!" "Then go back to the garage." he answered crossly. "Finally! Let's go." she said, taking a few steps to the far away lights that were civilization.

She waited for the echoing of Yoyo's stomps, but there were none. "Yoyo?"

"I'm gonna stay here."

"What?! You can't stay here!"

"Why?"

"Because it's all nasty and…look, I don't need to give an explanation, just let's go!"

There was a crunch as Yoyo sat on junk and shook his head, "No. I'm not going back. You can go. No one's stoppin' ya." Rhyth pointed at the boy in front of her. They could both see a little easier now that their eyes were adjusted to the darkness. "You are. I can't just leave you here!"

"What's the point of going back? We're getting kicked out in a couple of days anyway. Stalling doesn't stop it from coming…" he said miserably. Rhyth tilted her head as she placed a hand on his shoulder, "Yoyo…it'll be alright…I feel the same way." He smiled, happy that someone understood him. "But," she added, "if we don't get back, they're all gonna worry."

"Or they'll be wondering what we might be doing out and alone…" he joked crudely, receiving a whack in the head. He glared at Rhyth, "All you girls gotta be all sensitive about everything…" Rhyth sighed and shook her head, "I wonder about you sometimes, Yoyo…" He grinned wickedly, "Reeeally? About _what_?" Rhyth faced him wearing a grave undertone of annoyance, "That's the type of attitude that got you the first smack."

He walked backwards to avoid any more hits from Rhyth and tripped over an old tire. As he fell, there was a wooden hollow thud against whatever he had landed on. What seemed to be the handle was slicing its way into Yoyo's back. "Just what I need, more back pain!" he moaned, sitting up slowly. "Are you okay?" asked Rhyth, extending a hand out to him. "Funny, earlier you hit me and you cared less." he mocked, taking her hand. "Who the heck throws out a whole door?"

"Maybe there was once a house here?" suggested Rhyth thoughtfully. She studied the door and shrugged, "I dunno. Maybe." Yoyo rubbed his back, still sore about his back, "Well thanks for nothing whoever lived here!" he said, giving the handle a good kick. The metal knob flew to the other side of the wasteland they were in, revealing a small hidden keyhole. "The knob was a fake?" asked Rhyth, more confused than ever.

"Uhh…"

Yoyo squinted at the small inscription above the keyhole. It looked so familiar… "Hey, maybe this is what we're looking for hm?" smiled Rhyth, not meaning it. "You might be right, yo…" Yoyo looked at her, face in full seriousness. He reached for the paper in his pocket and felt a small, cold object along with it. He took it out and investigated it. It was the key that belonged with the box. "That's it!"

"What's it?" asked Rhyth. Her interest went to the key as he placed it into the hole and turned it. The metal from the lock snapped and clicked. Yoyo lifted one door with great difficulty as Rhyth watched in amazement. She was right, although she didn't believe it herself. A trail of rocky dirt stairs let into some underworld beneath the landfill. Yoyo, who looked as if Christmas had come early this year, pointed excitedly, "Hey! It worked! We found the way in! I solved a part of the riddle!"

Rhyth nodded shakily, "Congrats, now…let's go?"

Yoyo stared at her ridiculously, "Are you kidding me?!"

"We really should get back to the garage…"

"Rhyth! This is what we've been looking for! C'mon, you really wanna get back to that depressing lot?"

She crossed her arms sullenly, "That depressing lot is our _home_!" Yoyo took a step forward into the descending stairway, "Not for long."

Rhyth looked to the side sadly and hugged herself. Her arm was tugged gently, "It's not like I'm making you go by yourself here!" She put a foot onto a single step slowly. "Knowing you, this would be one of your pranks." He descended a little more, "You're probably right." Rhyth immediately stepped out and glared at him.

"It's not though!"

She stomped down ahead of him. "If anything happens to me down here…" Yoyo put a hand to his heart with a grin, "I'll guard you will my life." Rhyth shook her head, "Yeah right."

As they went down, their footsteps echoed throughout the entire narrow tunnel. Strangely, there were no lights, but the two were able to see ahead of them clearer than when they were at the dump. "Uh oh…" Rhyth heard Yoyo mutter. She spun around alarmed, "What?" Yoyo pointed to his foot that was sinking into the mud step. "Pull it out!" she ordered, tugging his arms. Rhyth grabbed onto a large rock to her side and tried to pull Yoyo to it since her skates weren't giving her any help.

Yoyo's skate slowly goosed out from the mud and he kicked the sludge off. "Aw damn it! These were new!" he sulked. Dusting herself off, Rhyth glanced at him, "This was all your idea." "Ah shaddup!" he muzzled, wiping his skate with his hand and dusting them off on his shorts.

A sudden crack interrupted the two's conversation. Rhyth looked ahead and then at the entryway quickly. Her crystal blue eyes scanned everywhere, "What was that?!" she whispered nervously. "Mm-mm?" Yoyo shrugged, continuing to dust himself off. "I heard something, Yoyo." she poked his shoulder rapidly. "Well I hear your mouth." he replied, stopping her from poking him again.

Suddenly a large shadow evolved from one of theirs, heading towards them and making the oddest noise. Rhyth's eyes widened and she screamed, scaring Yoyo. "What? What?!" he yelled and she pointed to the creature. "What the hell is that?!" yelled Yoyo as they backed into the other side of the dirt wall. They both held onto each other for emotional support and screamed their heads off, "AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!"

**Author's Note**: Oh, you're all in for it now! Please review! Please?! It's the only thing that keeps me going as is does for most writers. And…Umm…so does my imagination!


	4. Room for Two More?

**Room for Two More?**

A teasing snort echoed within the empty tunnel. A head-phoned boy rolled into the light clutching his sides and removing his goggles to wipe his eyes. "Oh, if only I had a camera!" he breathed, replacing his goggles again. Another shadow came closer to the group until she stepped into the light also wearing a smile. "I told you Yoyo had a crush." she smirked.

Yoyo and Rhyth looked at each other and immediately let go, making noises of disgust. "What are you doing here?!" Yoyo asked, trying to cut off the other's laughter. "We followed you, duh!" he answered, breathing in slowly. "Yeah, once we saw you two sneak off, I had a feeling you were up to something." added Gum, glancing around the tunnel, "So…where are we?"

"The place in the riddle." Yoyo told her proudly. "Are you serious? This place was real?" said Beat, skating around. Yoyo nodded and looked at Beat grimly, "Yeah, we were about to check this place out when you two intruded." Gum poked at the soft dirt and scrunched her face. This tunnel could collapse at any time, due to its weak structure. "I think we should get out of here before we drown in mud."

The boys stared at her. "Well I'm going to find out what the rest of this thing means!" commented Yoyo, walking ahead. He wasn't too far from where he started when he tripped over a metal case. "What the hell? Is today the day of tripping or what?!" he groaned, picking it up. Gum took it from him and checked inside. "It's a candle case." she clarified, nodding. "Okay, that tells me a whole lot." Yoyo muttered.

She tossed it back to him, "You put a candle inside and it's a light." Yoyo stared at it. "Oh…I knew that." He stood up and shrugged, "Now if only we had-" "A candle?" asked Beat, holding a piece of wax to Yoyo's face. "Where'd you get that?" asked Rhyth, taking it from him.

"From that bag on the floor."

"Bag?!"

They all stared at Beat and his smile disappeared, "What?" "What do you mean a bag?" pressured Rhyth, throwing the candle at him. He pointed to a torn up duffle that was across the floor, dirt covered and rotting. "You touched that thing?" prissed Gum, scrunching her nose. Yoyo couldn't seem to find a match so he clicked turbo on his skate and placed the string end of the candle to the exhaust pipe. The lighting was much better now and the four looked over at the bag once again.

The girls screamed and backed into the boys, covering their mouths. On the ground was half of a human body, covered in an old brown vest, gloves and an old red hunting hat with the flaps over his ears. The lower part of the body looked to have been ripped from him painfully and his ribs showed through the vest. He had bits of rotting flesh on some parts and nothing but bare bone on others. Yoyo's face paled as he glanced at Beat, "Beat…" he squeaked, "…you took the dead guy's candle!"

Beat's face lost equal amount of color, "Y-you lit it!" "But I didn't go through his stuff!"

Rhyth covered her face, "I feel dizzy…" "Let's get outta here!" cried Gum, tugging Beat's arm. Yoyo stepped over the corpse after first closing his eyes, hoping he wouldn't lose the pizza he ate earlier. "Euh…" he muttered. Beat started at him and his jaw dropped, "Yoyo, what the _hell_ do you think you're doing?!"

Yoyo turned, trying to avoid looking at the body, "I'm going on. I dunno about you, but I wanna find out what was so big for this dude to die down here lookin' for." "Maybe this signal of a dead body is to give a hint to leave?!" yelled Gum.

Yoyo shrugged, "So what? I'm not scared of it."

"You were a few minutes ago!"

"Don't bring up the past."

He walked farther down and stopped when his name was being called. "Huh?" he turned to see Beat catching up. "Can't let you die on your own!" he joked. Screams followed them until they got them, practically choking them both, "HOW CAN YOU JUST LEAVE US BACK THERE?!"

"Calm down!" coughed Beat, unfingering Gum's grasp on his neck. "Yeah! No need to get hasty!" agreed Yoyo, pushing Rhyth back. She glared at him, "So much for protection, huh Yoyo?" "Nothing's happened!" he defended, tapping the candle case. "Yet…" she whispered.

They continued on until they met a three way intersection. "Now what?" muttered Beat, glancing into each tunnel. All three were equally dark and spooky. "Split up?" suggested Yoyo, knowing it was the wrong answer when the girls glared at him. Gum glowered and snorted, "Are you stupid?" "Ooo, harsh." grinned Beat, leaning against the dirt wall.

He slid off and fell into a small hole, getting all dirty. "Smooth." snickered Yoyo, crossing his arms with satisfaction. Something round in the wall where Beat was leaning caught his attention. "What's this?" he questioned, turning the knob. Slots within the walls of two of their choice tunnels opened up, unlocking pendulum slicers.

"Um…choice number two?" he smiled nervously, heading into the middle one. The others followed quickly. As soon as Gum walked in, the chosen tunnel's pendulum fell and rocked back and forth as the others were doing. "Oh great! Now we're trapped!" whimpered Rhyth, shaking her head.

"It could be worse." brought up Beat. He rubbed his head as he realized he wasn't getting a signal from his headphones. He turned the dial to every station, but nothing came up clear. Only static waves were audible. "Are your watches working?"

Rhyth tapped hers and so did Gum. "No..." they answered in unison. "Yoyo?" The green haired boy shook his head quietly. "Your phone wouldn't happen to be in service, would it Gum?" Rhyth asked softly. Gum took out her cell phone and checked the screen. Every bar was gone. "No service." she answered.

Rhyth glared at Yoyo and pulled her hair behind her ear, "If we die down here, it's all your fault!" He looked at her innocently, "Who said we were gonna die?" No one answered his question, so they went on in the tunnel. Eventually, the girls ended up together in the back, far enough to talk without being overheard, but close enough to have light.

Rhyth shook her head, "Now we have double problems. We might end up like that guy back there," she shuttered, "or we might starve or get crushed or …something! And if we _do_ get back, we'll have nowhere to go after we get kicked out." Gum stared straight ahead without emotion. Her mind was wandering on random things, like how they were going to get out now, what new place where they going to live in, how cute Beat was looking right now, "Well Rhyth, if we do die, you won't have to worry about the second problem anymore."

&&&

"What's with you and Rhyth?"

"I dunno. What do you mean?"

"Well, almost every time I see you guys, you're either arguing or helping each other out. I don't get it."

"Since you put it that way, me neither."

Beat grinned teasingly, "So…what were you two doing before we found you?" Yoyo glanced at him, "You know, I told Rhyth someone was gonna think that." "So you were?"

"Were what?! No!" Yoyo stared at him embarrassed, "We're just friends, yo. And sometimes even hardly." "I guess I can agree on that. But…"

Yoyo glared at his friend, "But _what_?" "I always thought you liked her." Beat shrugged. Yoyo thought about this for a minute. "Well…I mean, as a friend I…yeah…but more than that? I…I dunno…" His walking pace became faster and he avoided anymore response by giving off thrown answers. Beat poked his arm and grinned. "So you like her? Not a big _deal_."

Yoyo passed the candle case to Beat with a shove, "You carry it. I'm gettin' tired, yo."

"I mean it's only natural for a guy to like a-"

"Do you ever shut up!?"

"That's something I'd be asking you."

The two stayed quiet, which was unusual for them, so the girls sped up a little, wondering what was going on.

"Why you gettin' all tense?"

"Why you gettin' all nosey?!"

Beat smirked, unable to keep an evil little chuckle inside. Yoyo balled his fingers into fists and glared at him. "Look, if you don't shut up, I'll let Gum in on your little secret!" The girls behind them stayed quiet, Gum especially, wondering what Yoyo was talking about. "Like I care?" Beat tossed back carelessly. Yoyo's glare swiftly changed to a lit-eyed, joyous expression as he noticed the two behind him.

He slide his hands into his pockets loosely, "So, you wouldn't care?"

"Unless you're deaf, you heard my answer."

"So if I was to just go up to her and say, hey Gum, Beat is totally droolin' over ya, you wouldn't give a damn?"

"You can tell her that and any other story plus more. I'ma tell her eventually."

Yoyo let out a snort and shook his head as Gum smiled to herself. Beat lifted an eyebrow, "What's so funny?" Yoyo stopped walking and faced Beat. "Sometimes you might regret what you say out loud. They might occasionally follow you, kinda like _shadows_."

Beat, confused and bewildered, shrugged and continued on, having no idea what Yoyo meant. The girls also followed, giggling to themselves.

&&&

"Are we going to have to spend the night here?"

Rhyth was tired and weary from the long walk of who knows how long and she wasn't in any mood to deal with nonsense. Yoyo glanced back, afraid to answer the possible truth. "Um…well…" He turned his head forward after receiving a dangerous glare from her.

Beat leaned on the soiled wall and plopped down right there, "I can't move anymore. We've been walking forever. This ain't going nowhere, _Yoyo_." The boy mentioned, cranky himself, sat on the ground, "Well you didn't have to follow me. That was your choice, _all of you_."

Gum placed a hand on her hip, "Uh, excuse me, but what do you two think you're doing?" Beat put his head back and closed his eyes. "Resting…" he mumbled, dozing off. "I don't think so!" Gum replied, shaking him awake, "I want to get out of here, _NOW_!"

A sudden gunshot broke the teen's anger. The four looked up uncertainly. "Did you hear that?" whispered Rhyth, backing into Yoyo who had gotten up at the sound. "Yeah…"

Gum and Beat exchanged glances, "Another trap?" Beat suggested, looking up. "Did we leave the doors open?" asked Rhyth, worry in her eyes. "Someone could've followed us in…"

"But how would they get past the swinging slicey things?" wondered Yoyo, throwing her idea out. "Well…whatever. Let's keep moving…" urged Beat, unnoticing that he had stepped on a cord. A rumble began cracking the walls, making dirt fall on them. "Beat!? What did you do?!" yelled Gum, covering her head. "I dunno!" he answered, looking around tensely.

It immediately stopped, puzzling the four GGs as they looked at each other with questioning expressions. "Right…so, as I was saying…" started Beat, taking another step. This time, he stepped on the cord fully, sinking it into the dirt and snapping it. The floor began to crumble below them as they raced to get away.

"RUN, RUN!" yelled Beat as he tried to keep balance on the rocky bits that were cracking. They finally reached the area where the trap had stopped and looked behind them. Underneath the ground they had been traveling on were spiky, dagger-like stalagmites, ready to pierce through anyone who had the misfortune of falling on them.

They sat down, catching their breath and smiling. "This place is crazy." said Beat, shaking his head. "We need to get out-" "We know, we know…" sighed Yoyo, rubbing his head. He took out the old small paper from his pocket and was about to read, "The travel of a boy might go…," he panted, "…ending in…a one man shoooooooooowww!!!"

"YOYO!" The three yelled as he fell through a hidden pocket that was under him. Beat got ready to go after him, when the ceiling over the hole collapsed, sealing the gap with rocks and mud. "Yoyo…" Rhyth whispered, covering her mouth. "NO!" Beat bashed his fists furiously against the cap of the hole, but it was too late to aid their friend. This was obviously another trap of the tunnel, and he had become victim to it.

* * *

**Author's Note**: Anyone emotionally attached to Yoyo? I think there are a few. I'm sorry. But the story gets better! Promise! Oh yeah and I own nothing from Jet Set Radio Future. Nothing at all. (I'm probably the only one who has a disclaimer at the end of a chapter eh?) 


	5. Silent Night

**Silent Night **

**

* * *

**

Author's Note Before you read, I should explain a few things about this chapter. It's going to get confusing towards the end. The slanted words stand for thoughts. Regular straight words are talking. Pay attention to who's talking and whose thinking, but you're all smart. I'm sure you'll get it, after the first five tries.

* * *

The travel seemed too quiet now that one of their own was gone. Starting with four, there were now three, and none had talked since. "_I should've stopped this in the beginning_…" Beat told himself, moving robotically, stony faced. "_Before anything happened…_" 

Gum stared at the dirt path, tagging along by listening to Beat's footsteps. "_He just disappeared, right out of our hands. This is worse than…losing him in a fight would be…but…he was our way out…how are we going to get out now before we lose anyone else?_"

Rhyth followed slowly, arms wrapped around her for self-comfort, feeling cold and lonely. The worse she had ever felt since she had come into the real world. "_Why? Why did he have to go? He was never really bad…just a kid under that smug smile…I'll never see him again…I didn't get to…say sorry…or thank you…or…good bye…_"

Stinging tears trickled down her cheeks as she squeezed her eyes shut to clear her vision. If only she was in her room to hide from the fear like she would always do. To feel safe and welcomed with love all around. Now her friend was gone, and soon, her home would be too.

Rhyth sped up and skated next to Beat, who was pale. "Beat?" she whispered with a broken voice. He remained the same and stayed staring ahead, "Hm?" he said softly. "Do you think he's…" she started, but couldn't bear to finish the end. He stopped and took her hand, silent. She looked down at her skates, a single diamond-like bead falling from her cheek and staining the dirt.

"I don't know," he whispered, "but we know the reasonable possibility." Her lip trembled as she pulled away from his grip, "How can you say that?" she asked horrified. "Because it's the truth." answered Gum, side of Beat.

Rhyth glared at them furiously. What kind of friends were they who had no hope? To have no faith. Not any kind of trust? Gum reached for Rhyth's shoulder, "Not saying it doesn't mean it didn't happen. We know that. _You_ know that." Rhyth shook her head in denial, "No…" Beat sighed mournfully, "You have to accept it, Rhyth. The same way you would have to if it would've happened in a fight or by cops."

Rhyth turned her back to them and wiped a cheek, "It's not the same! _You_ know that! You _both_ know that! If it would've happened with the others, there could've been a way to save him. The hospital…at the garage…somewhere! There could've been hope! Here…here, there's nothing…"

"How did you expect us to help him here, hm!? You think we can just bring him back magically?!" asked Gum with steamed attitude, "Don't think you're the only one who cares!" Rhyth backed into the wall and cried more. Beat sighed and shook his head. This was going nowhere and they needed to work together to get out of this torture chamber. They at least needed each other.

"_Stop…_," cried Rhyth within her mind, "_stop yelling at me…_"

Beat shook Gum gently, "Stop, c'mon, we need to keep moving." She took in a deep breath and kept walking, but Rhyth stayed in her same spot. She opened her eyes and looked at the ground, thinking. "Rhyth?" Beat called softly, "Let's go."

&&&

Two of the three stayed quiet for awhile due to the previous argument. The only one who was talking on and off was Beat, who had come to be the new leader through the maze of tunnels. The awkwardness of the silence was haunting and mind troubling, not at all soothing to the past's events.

"_Beat_…?"

"Yeah?"

The girls looked at each other confused. "What?" he asked again, turning to them. "I didn't say anything." said Gum. "Neither did I…" Rhyth told him. The voice sounded so far away, but it was moving quickly.

"_Beat_…?"

"Alright…"

"Beat…!"

"What?!" he asked nervously, looking in every direction.

Another shot was heard, and the three crammed together terrified. "What's going on?!" asked Gum, taking Beat's arm. "And who's calling you?" added Rhyth, taking the other. Beat backed up, hesitant of how to answer any of the questions. "I want to get back home…" whined Gum, looking down one end of the tunnel. They slowly walked together, arm in arm, the hairs on their necks raised and the chills of creeps dug under their skins.

Beat stopped with a pale look upon his face and sluggishly turned around in the slowest fashion possible.

"_Be-at_…"

_It_ was behind them. The girls turned at the sound of the voice and all three screamed, one falling back in a dead faint. The girls hugged each other and screamed, "Get _away_!!!" The visitor chuckled and wiped his face clean, "Hey, it's me!"

Gum's eyes widened as did Rhyth's. "Y-yoyo?!"

"That's m-whoa!"

He was whipped into a hug from them both, "You're not dead!?" Gum cried out. Yoyo looked at his hands, studying them thoroughly. "Not that I know of!" he smiled. Gum went to Beat's side, but Rhyth stayed attached to Yoyo. Yoyo glanced at her and smiled. When Rhyth noticed this, she became livid, pushing him away. She went to the side by herself, crossing her arms and staring at the ground with a look of irritation. Yoyo shrugged, "_What's with the mood change?_"

Gum, on the other hand, was slapping Beat's face left and right as she tried to revive him. "Beat?" she called, shaking him. His head hug loosely as she sat him up against the cold wall of dirt. Yoyo shook his head, drying out his wet hair that was plastered to his forehead. He was soaked to the bone, but the girls didn't mind or notice for any cause, that he was. The short teen skated to the unconscious one, ringing his hood out on top of Beat's head.

Beat shuddered and blinked, waking back into the world. "What happened?!" he asked, rubbing his head as he wondered why it was wet. "You passed out." answered Gum, getting up. He also stood up, all though not as quickly as Gum, "I did?" His eyes looked out from behind his blue tinted goggles, viewing his friend. "Yoyo?! Ho-What…?!"

Yoyo tossed a hand out, "Ah, you know me, nothing gets me down!" Beat pointed a blameful finger at him, "But your face was white! I remember now!" Yoyo smiled sheepishly and stuck his hands in his pockets. "I had to get you back for earlier, yo."

Beat was about to contradict, but he smiled instead and gave Yoyo a slight punch in the arm, "You got me. We're even." Gum pinched a part of Yoyo's short sleeved hood, "Went for a swim?" He shook his head, wetting them. He answered as they listened grimly, "I fell through that hole and it sent me down a shoot and I fell into this pond. When I got up, I walked around and there's this huge waterfall all the way at the end with stuff! I came back here to show you guys the way back, but I got lost. Lucky bumping into you, huh?"

"What's this white stuff?" asked Beat, brushing it off Yoyo's arm roughly. "Sand. From the shore…place." "Oh…well let's get to that waterfall area. We could use some water." said Gum, motioning Yoyo to lead them. "I said I got lost, remember? I don't know how to get back. There were lots of turns on the way here." Yoyo sighed, kicking out his legs to rid the wetness.

"Let's get going anyway…" she moaned, walking at a snail's pace. Rhyth went with Gum, but not before glaring at Yoyo first. Yoyo lifted an eyebrow and turned to Beat, who was trying to dry his headphones thanks to Yoyo. When both girls were a good distance away, Yoyo leaned on the wall and asked, "What's Rhyth's problem? She's all pissed at me."

Beat glanced up from his headphones, "She's…a little fumed, I guess." Yoyo began to follow the light's dim glow, "Why?" That small question seemed to echo through out the entire tunnel, shaking the walls. Beat started skating, still checking on his headphones. "Well, she was pretty upset when you were gone."

"So she's been mad since then?"

"No, I mean your being gone affected her emotionally."

"Oh…"

Yoyo spit out a piece of seaweed that had lodged between his teeth and continued. "Well she started out with a hug, but then she got all 'grrr' and pushed me away!"

Beat stopped and faced Yoyo, "Look, we thought you were dead. Not an easy thing to just 'get over', understand? Rhyth's probably upset about the prank you pulled. Yeah, it was meant for me and Gum, but remember, she was there too. I'm sure she got freaked."

Yoyo nodded guiltily, "Well…yeah…"

"And here's another thing about before…" he glanced at Yoyo, "She cried."

Beat continued his trail while Yoyo stood glued to the ground, baffled. "_She cried?! …I didn't know she would cry for me…_" He sped up after almost losing them and kept quiet. He only talked when being talked to. For a good while, they walked foot after foot with nothing to gain and everything to lose. "We're gonna die in here." moaned Gum, rubbing her sore ankle. "Oh shut up already, all you do is whine!" complained Beat, wheezing himself.

"Guys, don't fight…" whispered Rhyth, so low, barely anybody could hear. She stepped on a rock and slipped, falling into Yoyo's catch. She pulled away quickly, back into her crossed armed, cross attitude. Yoyo glanced at the ground as the dirt caught his attention. "Hey look!" he pointed out, but the other two were too busy wrapped in their little argument and the girl before him was ignoring him. "Hello?" he called out.

Yoyo sighed as he received no attention. "Guys!?" he yelled, but not over the other shouts that were going on. "YO?!" he boomed, throwing a mud ball at Beat angrily. They all stared at him in shock. "What the hell was that for?" asked Beat, wiping his face off. "Something different about the dirt?" asked Yoyo, poking it. Gum stared at it for a moment, "It's…mushy! There has to be water near somewhere!"

"And if there's water somewhere, like the waterfall," added Beat, "that means there's an exit too!"

"A way out?!!" jumped Gum excitedly.

"Home!" agreed Beat. They had totally forgotten their brawl before and hugged tightly out of pure happiness. Only when they realized their action did they let go, embarrassed with smiles. Yoyo couldn't seem to find the joy in this news, so he dug into the wall, not sure of what to expect.

Gum took a step forward and her foot sank into the mud. "Ewww!" She tried pulling it out and it squished and squirted, revealing a now brown skate. She sighed in a give up manner and stepped over the mud pile. They each did the same routine and managed to get over the glop successfully unlike Gum had. The soon found themselves in a small rounded room. It had wine racks and wine bottles, wooden pipes and junk on the floor. Beat ran to the racks and picked up a bottle. It had no label on it, so he uncorked it, "Gotta be worth a drink!"

Yoyo took another and smashed it on the floor. "What's wrong with you?" asked Beat, mortified. "Dropped it." admitted Yoyo, taking another. He opened his and smelled the rim, "Mmmm…" Beat tapped his with Yoyo's, "Cheers!" Just as Beat was about to take a gulp, Gum put a finger to his mouth, "Wait, wait, wait! We can't have you two drinking yourselves drunk here! You can have a sip now. Take one with you for later if you want, but you're not getting drunk here, right Rhyth?" Rhyth looked at them and shrugged, seeing how Yoyo had been drinking while Gum was talking.

"Yoyo! I said a sip!" scolded Gum, snatching the bottle from him and taking a chug herself. "It's sweet!" she said happily, licking her lips. "Must've been here forever!"

She picked up a non-opened wine bottle and tucked it under her arm while the others finished up the opened one, "Got mine." Beat grabbed one, "Me too." They walked out happier than they did coming in. Yoyo took one for himself and saw Rhyth walk out alone, empty-handed. He grabbed one for her, just in case, and ran to catch up.

&&&

"Now what!?"

"I don't know! How was I supposed to know it was dynamite!?"

The four ran for their lives as dynamite sticks had been lit by Yoyo accidentally and were now fusing. He had thought they were more candles lying around. The first one blew, shooting rocks and anything else that might have been lying about at the four teens, making them scream. The second and third went at the same exact time, shaking the ground and them off balance.

Yoyo helped Gum up and then Rhyth, who at first took his hand, but then changed her mind. "What is your _deal_?!" he fumed, crossing his arms, annoyed. "I don't need your help!" she threw back. "Uh, guys! Less talking! More walking!" warned Beat, as another fuse burned slowly to its main course. As this explosion blew, rocks from the 'ceiling' collapsed everywhere, caving in one side of the tunnel.

"You _so_ need my help!" said Yoyo, catching a rock that was about to fall on Rhyth. Her crystal blue eyes flamed darkly, "Leave me alone!" Beat and Gum looked at each other as the walls began sliding in. "I'm scared…" whispered Gum, lacing her fingers with Beat's. "It's alright…" comforted Beat, wrapping his free arm around her. She rested her head on his shoulder. It felt so right at the moment to do so. It made her feel…at home.

They looked at each other and blushed, smiling smiles they never knew they could create. Yoyo stood up from the ruble and glared at Rhyth, unable to deal with this anymore. "Why do you hate me?! What did I do?! What've you got against me, Rhyth?!" Rhyth also stood up and dusted herself off, faltering to answer.

"Did you hear me?!"

"….."

Rhyth glanced up weakly at his towering form, not wanting to say anything, but felt she had no choice. "You want to know why?!" she yelled back. He glared at her, waiting for her reply to his question. Nothing was going to surprise him. She went up to his face, as they stared at each other darkly. She couldn't say it. So she wouldn't. The girl of blue indicated that she was going to hit him, but instead she gripped her hands on his shoulders and gave him a soft peck on his cheek as the last dynamite exploded.

He stared at her shocked, not expecting that at all, and every anger cell within him evaporated. It was an awkward stage until they were pushed through a hole that the last blast had created, saving them from being crushed by the collapsing tunnel. Beat shook Yoyo, who was still stunned from the previous event, grinning madly, "We're outta the tunnels! Look! Look!"

After a few minutes, Yoyo's mind registered the words and he turned around. A loud rushing of water was heard not to far off to their left and they were now inside an extremely large cavern with shiny black wet stones all around and some grass and mud lined at the river's sides.

"It's that place!" smiled Yoyo, "The one I was telling ya about!" "Damn right!" grinned Beat, racing to the river's bank. A shine from above made everything have a whitish glow, filling Gum with awe. She looked up and saw a hole about the size of a car letting in the night's moonlight. "That's our way out!" she thought happily.

"Guys! We can get out through that hole up there! Look! Loo…" she began, but stopped when she saw what they were doing. The boys had abandoned their skates, any headgear, and shirts to jump into the refreshing water. She rolled her eyes and placed herself at the edge of the drifting water to wash her face. Using her cupped hands, she lifted water to her face after first removing her helmet, cleansing the dirt and dust off her face in a very mannerly way.

"Heads up!"

Gum glared at the two boys as she sat there, dripping wet. They ducked into the water, it right under their noses. "You looked like you needed to cool off Gum!" laughed Yoyo, splashing her once again. She secretly picked up a small rock from behind her, "Yeah…you're right…" Yoyo sensed something negative from her and dunked back into the water as the rock flew passed him and smashed Beat squarely in the head. "OW!"

"Oops…"

Yoyo spit out water as he came back up, "What I miss?"

A sharp object made contact with his ear, knocking him off balance. "Only that." answered Gum.

&&&

Beat walked around the patches of muddy grass trying to at least keep his skates dry and clean. His watch couldn't reach the outside world through signal, but it could still tell time. Right now it was ten forty-five and the cavern was very dark compared to how it had been an hour before. The boy could not remember a time in his life when he had been so hungry for anything. He would've eaten raw fish if he could have found it. Sadly, there were no fish of any kind in the underground river, so anyone's luck for food was out.

Since no one took up the search, he decided to take it upon himself to check out the cave. It was very beautiful if one had the time to really take in the view from where he was. At the top of the waterfall was a rock ledge that stood over the falls, like a bridge, that led to the opposite side of the land on bottom and that is where Beat was spending his time at the moment. Legs hanging over the edge, he breathed in the cavern air and ignored the growls of starvation coming from his mid.

The moonlight created a beam of light from the opening in the ceiling of the cave, shining diamond-like dazzles across the still waters at the far end of the grotto. Even the mud was shining, having elegance as if it belonged with the picture, for if not there, the scene would be incomplete. The very few, light flowers had opened to the glow, reaching to the sides and floor as they died their slow deaths peacefully. As Beat took in this sight, his stomach contained flutters of excitement and anxiety. Not knowing why, he rubbed his arm uncomfortably, having a feeling that he was being watched.

He turned his head and saw that he was alone, but it wasn't good enough for him. Where was everyone anyway? He stood up, slipping and sliding his way down the rocks, back down to the main grounds. He seated himself on one of the rocks and tossed a rock into the water, watching how far it would skip before it sank. As soon as he had found it interesting, be became deadly bored, wanting to put life to use. As his eyes scanned the area, he realized that the living world was the one where they were supposed to be, not this underground dirt hole.

A light feel on his shoulder made him turn around, smiling as he knew the touch of the person. They watched the moonlight as it rained down from the sky, both knowing it could be their way out, both not sure if that's what they really wanted at that moment.

&&&

The falls roared as falls do, crashing into the rest of the water below with a ruling strength, holding the river in place. They hid a thin girl wearing a look of uncertainness and regret. Her light indigo hair was stuck to her face, due to her sticking her head in the falls, and her dark, icy, blue eyes stared ahead as she slouched on her slippery rock holding her knees close.

Seeking freedom was far from the ideas forming within her mind, only the past seemed important.

"_Why did I do that? After how long of keeping it a secret, I just blow it like that? And it was so quick too! Only I could've made a stupid mistake like that. Things just can't move on for me. It's one thing after another…_"

She sighed and reached her hand out to the falling water, "_Why can't life be like the falls? It never stops going, but drops the old and brings the new. Things could be so simple if everyone allowed it to be…_"

She cupped some water in her hands and threw it at her face, waking herself up from her little self-conversation. "I can't even say anything to him anymore." she whispered, hugging her knees once again. She glanced down at her reflection, studying herself. How small and frail she looked: weak and helpless, sick and depending. She tore away from the sight and went back to the falls again. She found comfort in those rushing drops of water and a feeling of peace.

Her worries soon came back to haunt her. "Oh! Why did I kiss him?" she sighed nervously. "I could've gotten him at another time, in a better place, with no one _watching_! And not just a little kiss either…"

A stifled sniff broke her muttering conflict. Her nerves tensed up and her mouth dropped open, "Yoyo?!" His head swiftly jerked in everyway, searching for his caller. He was sitting, not in the mud, but close to it on land, away from the wetness. He had been zoned in his own little world, not knowing there was someone else there. "Rhyth…"

She glanced at him anxiously, "D-did you hear what I said?" He shook his head honestly, "No…" Rhyth wasn't sure if she should believe this, but it didn't matter if he had or hadn't. He already knew how she felt about him and that wasn't going to change.

&&&

Yoyo glanced at her again as she went back to watching the waterfall. He was glad there wasn't much lighting. She would have seen his dark blush when she called him. Not that he was in love or anything, but when he was caught off guard by a girl, it embarrassed him. He was the type who liked to be ready for anything and he thought he was alone.

He had been only thinking of what Rhyth had done before they entered in this cave. Not that it was a big thing or anything like that, but it shocked him badly. The moment was so awkward, he wondered what would've happened if the tunnel wasn't about to collapse on them. Yoyo placed it in basic terms for himself. He wasn't sure how to react to that one. He definitely knew how he felt, though.

"_She cried…_"

Those words seemed to swim around in his head ever since he had heard them. Rhyth cared about him and it made him feel…embarrassed. Had he been so blind to not see her kindness towards him?

"_She's gotta hate me now…Not sure why, but I think it could be still from the prank…I didn't mean for her to feel that way…_"

Stealing another glance at her, he found himself also being watched and they both looked away quickly. Yoyo wanted to laugh lightly, but it would break the feeling of peace being held there. He liked when he would look at a girl and she would catch him. But had he been caught? Or did he catch her?

He knew he was still blushing, but that feeling should've gone away by now. He rubbed a cheek with the back of his hand in awe. They were burning up. Ignoring this, he went back to his thoughts.

"_Wasting life here…when I could be apologizing…or something…_"

He took in a deep breath and stood up. Rhyth watched him curiously, wondering what he was doing. The boy made his way next to her, not minding at all if he was going to get a little wet or not. Rhyth watched him, then stared back at her regular timed waterfall, remembering that she was supposed to be upset.

For a while, no one said nothing, making the time as useless as it was before. Then Yoyo spoke up, "Um, Rhyth?" She didn't respond in any way, yet continued with her routine. He hung his legs over the side and kicked at the water with his skates, "You're not still _mad_ at me, are ya?" Rhyth made a little sniff and glanced away from his direction. "I guess that's my answer…" he said in a muffed voice, for his chin was resting in his hand.

"You can't hate me forever, Rhyth!"

"…."

"_Okay, maybe she can hate me forever…_"

Rhyth turned herself completely around, losing any contact with him as for view. Yoyo noticed this, but decided to leave her alone and not bother her, only with his voice. "Uhh…hey, I'm sorry for yellin' at ya before…I mean, I didn't know…um…you know." he rubbed his wrist nervously. He hated apologizing, no matter who it was. Even to his dog.

His heart raced as he pressured himself on. Why was he feeling this way?

"_Yo, this is so wrong…_"

"_Ok, so he apologized. Doesn't take away his stupidity. Or his immaturity. Or…his personality…_"

"_Just say something already! Why am I holding back!?_"

"_But…does he need to apologize for those things? I mean, people are born that way. Maybe that's why I like…no! No I don't! Consider him dead, Rhyth! You can't let this take over!_"

Rhyth twisted herself to face the falling waters again, but now she could see _him_ again. Not her master plan. "So you're not gonna talk to me no more?" asked Yoyo.

"_Oh great going Yoyo! Just made it worse. Maybe it was better that I was holding back…_"

Rhyth glanced at him quickly, but that's all.

"C'mon Rhyth! I said I was sorry!"

His voice was so sincere and pleading. He really wanted to be forgiven. Rhyth shook herself on the inside, "_No, let him suffer a little more. …suffer? What got into **me**?_"

Yoyo glanced down at his reflection in the wavering waters. Same old Yoyo. The same one who would hide Rhyth's skates just for the heck of seeing her worry about if she had lost them or not, the same one who would change the channel of her show when it would actually start to get good, the same one who would eat her food before she would be able to. God, he was bad to her! A pang of guilt twisted a knot in his stomach and he slumped, leaning back.

He suddenly had the urge to wrap his arms around Rhyth and pull her close. Of course, he held himself back, but with a little difficulty. "_What's happening to me?!_"

A quick peek at Rhyth, and he immediately wished he hadn't. She was gazing out into space, her indigo hair slightly blowing back from the breeze of rapid falling water, her blue eyes glimmering along with the water like crystals, her radiant beauty standing out, making Yoyo realize he had been after her the entire time since they had spent some time together.

The boy pulled up his hood, something he hadn't done in a long time, to hide his burning cheeks and shy grin. Rhyth noticed his actions, wondering what he was thinking. You could never know with boys. He poked her arm and her eye twitched. "Rhyth?"

Her expression stayed the same.

"Please Rhyth, it was stupid of me to mess with your emotions. I'm an idiotic, narcissistic, immature dork…who's sorry about hurting you…"

"_Where the hell did that come from?! That was supposed to stay in the thought part!_"

Rhyth began to smile, but she stopped herself. "_**No! Don't give in so easily.** But…he did admit a few things…**Don't give him the satisfaction! Make him work for your forgiveness!** He said he was sorry!_"

Yoyo reached into his pocket quickly. He saw the bit of smile that had emerged from Rhyth and thought it right to give her a token of what he had found earlier. He stood up and Rhyth ignored him until she felt something around her neck. "What are you doing?!" she yelled, pulling away cautiously.

"Calm down! I ain't gonna kill ya or nothin'! I just thought maybe a gift could talk better than I could…" he said, hooking the chain on her neck. Rhyth looked at the necklace in a daze. It was beautiful! Filled with sapphires and silver, perfectly matching her outfit. "Oh…Yoyo…" she gasped, barely touching the jewels. "You didn't…steal this, did you?"

"Nah! I sorta found it here while you were talking to Gum. I've been hoping to give it to you…" he stuttered, twirling his fingers around each other. Rhyth tried to hold back her smile again, yet she couldn't. Yoyo sat down next to her again, and watched her expression. He felt like he was in second grade, when all the kids would give out their valentines to their crushes, smiling shyly and feeling all giggly inside.

He decided to let Rhyth think things over, so he sat closer to the edge of the rock, glancing at his reflection again. Rhyth's anger let go quickly, her feelings for him returning to normal. "Yoyo?" He turned his head, "Yeah?" She scooted closer, "I hope you understand this doesn't change anything between us." He tilted his head, his brain managing the words being said.

"Um, okay…so you still hate me?"

"You've annoyed me, tricked me, frustrated me, and aggravated me almost everyday since I've known you. What do _you_ think?"

Yoyo listened, but he was wondering what Rhyth was getting at. She talked as if she was angry, but her motions showed…kindness? "_This is getting weirder by the minute…_"

Rhyth was already next to him, "You're kinda sweet, though…" she said with a giggle. "Uhuh…" agreed Yoyo, inching away as she moved closer with every word. "And I always thought you were a little cracked…" she added, eyes shimmering.

"Heheh, wouldn't cha know…"

"And cute too, but you just hide those eyes, don't you?"

Yoyo realized he had nowhere to go now and gulped nervously, "Uhhh…" Rhyth giggled and walked two fingers up his chest and pressed his nose, "But!..." she said, giving him a good push into the water, "This means nothing because nothing between us is gonna change!"

Yoyo floated back up quickly and struggled to get himself to shore. "Rhy-th! Why the…hell'd…you…do that!?" He blinked and looked at her, "You owe me a pair of shades!" She giggled, "What's the fuss? Go and get them!" He shook his head, eyes wide and wheezing, "Can't…"

"_He looks a little freaked out…_" "Why not?"

Glaring at her, he stood up and ringed out his hood, "Can't swim!"

"_Didn't see that coming…_" Rhyth covered her eyes and shook her head, "Ugh, I have to be coming down with something. Sorry, Yoyo. I don't know, it must be the stress or…" she shrugged, "I didn't know you couldn't swim."

Yoyo sighed, "Well, now you do!" A slightly cool breezed through, sending chills all around Yoyo. He shook his head and sniffed. Rhyth watched his motions. "You should sit." she suggested, pointing to a side of the rocky wall. Yawning, Yoyo sat against the wall, wiping the water droplets off his arms, not that it helped much. Rhyth's fingers ran over her new necklace and she took a place next to Yoyo. He glanced at her and yawned once again, stretching. He shivered a bit and Rhyth her arms around his neck.

Feeling uncomfortable, Yoyo laughed nervously, "Uhh…" Rhyth looked at him, "Don't worry, I'm helping you out. You fell into cold water and there's a breeze blowing, with nothing to warm yourself." He snorted, "You mean I was _pushed_ into cold water?" Rhyth sighed, "Do you want my help or be frozen?"

Yoyo relaxed himself and Rhyth pulled him close. "Friends, right?" he asked. "Of course, and friends do friends favors, right?"

"Yeah. Even when they give off an indication of something that's not?"

"Yup."

"Okay."

"Cool."

Soon enough, Yoyo stretched out on his stomach, curling his arms in as pillows for his head, and Rhyth used Yoyo's back for her own pillow. They were both in a peace, unaware of what was coming.

* * *

Author's Note: Okay, I felt like writing so this was a long one. It is also a gift to a friend! Merry Christmas, Miruu!!! Please, review and of course, enjoy. I do feel that I rushed Yoyo's reappearing act. I should have made them sulk more! - Heheh. So I'm commenting myself on that. 


	6. Visitors

**Visitors **

The streaming light from dawn seeped into the cave, slowly setting everything into a bright yellow-orange color. The water flowed gently, shimmering as it had at night, but with a different uniqueness. The light tipped the metal of the young teen's skate, creating a glow of brilliance around the cave. She moved her foot out of the warmth of the sun, welcoming it back into the cool, wet environment. She ran her fingers through the short hair of the sleeping boy, his head resting on her lap. A small smile formed along the sides of her mouth. To think that they had both been fighting over when they were leaving that cave, and any other brawls seemed so…unheard of… to her.

She removed her heavy helmet, wondering why she hadn't done so before. In actuality, it was not very heavy, but the weakness she was suffering made it feel that way. Today was the day they were getting out. To face more depression, but this was the happiest she had felt since they left the garage. "We'll manage. Nothing's brought us down before." she whispered.

A drowsy pair of eyes lifted open at the sound of these words. He was so tired, it took him a good five minutes to focus on the girl's face. "What?" he moaned. Gum glanced down at him in a stare. She wasn't sure how to answer, so she shrugged.

"No, you said something before. Who are you talking to?"

Gum shook her head lightly, "I'm not talking to anyone. Just thinking out loud."

"Oh. What time is it?" he yawned, feeling calm and collected. "Three in the morning." answered Gum, starting to play with his hair. Beat closed his eyes with a relaxed smile. Heavy footsteps were heard not to far off, filling Gum with curiosity. Sensing her tenseness, Beat opened one eye, "Probably the other two."

&&&

Yoyo and Rhyth slept soundly, dreaming random events and mumbling sleepily. The boy turned in his sleep, forcing Rhyth's head to fall against the ground, waking her. Startled, she sat up in a jolt, afraid of the effect. Her blue eyes searched around, but found nothing except of what was already there before she had fallen asleep.

Yoyo mumbled some nameless words and nuzzled his head into his arms, making himself unconsciously comfortable. Rhyth took a deep breath, remembering where she was. She half expected herself to be rolling off her bed back in the garage. Still unsure of something, she stood up, crunching the rocks underneath her.

"Super-cali-fragilis-ticexpia-lido-cious…" called out a grumble.

She glanced at Yoyo and smiled, shaking her head. Looking up, she realized she hadn't seen or talked to neither Gum nor Beat since the night before. Wondering where they could be at this time, she thought about looking for them, but felt guilty once she took three steps away from Yoyo.

"Yoyo?" she crooned softly, rubbing his shoulder. "Mmm…not now…" he uttered sleepily, pulling his hood over his eyes. "We need to find the others!" she said louder.

"They're sleepin…"

"Yoyo!"

"Five minutes!"

"_Now_!"

"NO!"

Yoyo glared at her angrily as she glared back. "You're awake now, so you might as well." she smirked, placing a hand on her hip. Yoyo sat on the ground, cross armed like a five year old. "Then I guess you'll stay here yourself." she nodded, leaving him. She made her way to the falls and went behind the rocks. She could've sworn she had seen Beat go there yesterday. Her wheels slipped on the slimy rocks, making her squeal as she fell down.

"Ew…" she sighed, wiping her hands.

"Are you okay?!"

Rhyth looked behind her as Yoyo helped her up. "Since when did you care?" she asked with a smile. "Uhh…" he looked at her. This was another mind twisting game of hers. He grinned, "Well, I'm keeping a promise, remember?" Rhyth blinked as she did remember what he had said before they entered into the underground tunnels.

"Oh, right." she responded, sounding a little disappointed. Yoyo couldn't help but smile. Knowing she liked him, he was going to bother her all the time. He slid his hands into his pockets and smiled as he joined Rhyth in the search for their friends. "Something's not right, here." shook Rhyth, rubbing her chin. "We got lost yesterday after realizing our home is being taken from us, we got stuck in these tunnels that never ended, I got lost for a while and then…other things came along with that, and we're standing here looking for our friends that are now missing. Wouldn't cha know? It doesn't sound exactly normal!" joked Yoyo.

Rhyth looked at him blankly, not finding any humor in it. "Uhhh….shutting up." muttered Yoyo, looking up. The girl's eyes roamed the ground. There was other footprints, so they were definitely there, but how much farther could they go? "This is about as much as they could walk…" deciphered Rhyth, "But…"

Yoyo waved at her. Staring at him was the only way he was going to get it that she didn't understand. "They could've climbed?" suggested Yoyo, shrugging. Rhyth's eyes widened, "Of course! Silly me!" she giggled, starting to climb the slippery rocks. Yoyo sat on a lower rock and leaned against the stony wall, "Hey Rhyth?"

She looked around. There was no one around at the top of the falls. "Yeah?"

"Before we got into this mess, you know, before the tunnels…and we were sorta arguing?"

"Uhuh?"

"Were you lying to me when we were talking about who was gonna like who and all that?"

She climbed down carefully and crossed her arms, "Yoyo, this really isn't the time or place." He stared at her confused, "Time or place? I think it's the best time or place."

"We need to concentrate on our missing friends?"

"If my mind helps me out and gives me the right memory, someone was thinking of something else during a life or death situation." he grinned. She glared at him, "Because it was _a life or death situation_. We were supposed to be dead a long time ago. I didn't know _you_ would come to haunt me." Yoyo shrugged, "Thought it would be right to ask, since we're actually alone right now."

"Oh that's where you're wrong my sweet little pains!" cried out an arrogant, hysterical laugh walking closer to them. The two were suddenly surrounded by police, all armed with guns. Rhyth grabbed onto Yoyo nervously and whispered, "I don't have any cans!" He his arm went around her as in responds, "Me neither…"

"Awww, another couple? Must be all suckers day!" laughed the middle aged man. He already had white hair, but he treasured his non-fallen teeth as he was always grinning evilly at his work. He lifted his silver gun and cracked his head to the side the way he usually did when he knew he had it his way. "Another?" whispered Rhyth.

Her eyes traveled beyond the police round-up to her friends tied up, back to back. Their heads were hung towards the floor, embarrassed to be caught. "Now what brings four rugrats down to this lowly cavern?" he asked calmly, which signaled a danger within the area. They stayed silent.

"Well, since you won't talk, why don't we get rid of you?"

Rhyth suddenly had a rush of courage, "How did you get down here?" Not expecting this question, Hayashi stared at her, but then answered, "We followed you, of course." "Followed us?" repeated Yoyo. "Yes, followed you, you little idiot! Is it necessary to repeat myself?" growled Hayashi, shaking his gun at them.

"Those shots weren't part of the cave's traps…they were you!" solved Rhyth, standing straight. "Well, some few never did shut up, so I made them. Eternal silence is better than none!" he erupted manically. By the looks on the fellow police's faces, they knew better than to argue back. Few of them had the guts to glance at Hayashi's gun.

"Little do you brainless twits know, this cavern is off limits to you!" he announced happily. "Says who!?" yelled Beat behind them. The older man spun his foot around, twisting his entire body to face the boy. "Says me." he grinned with an immoral smile.

"What's so great about this cave that you'd want it? Its pure hell!" complained Gum, lifting her head. Two officered locked Yoyo's and Rhyth's wrists, "Sir? Should we take them in?"

"First let me answer." Hayashi scolded, his eyes glowing with a sinful lure. "My dear snot, if you had any sense, you would've noticed that there is a large amount of riches that are well hidden into this place. The government has looked constantly for this _treasure_, if you will, but has had no luck because they did not have the directions to search for it. Now…" he said, glancing at Yoyo, "I do believe you have something that belongs to us."

Yoyo glared at him, "Yeah, a nice long speech I won't be able to say 'cus there are girls here." Hayashi stepped forward, his head tilted in a no nonsense manner, "Don't fool with me, boy. You've been traveling with those directions the entire time!"

He raised the gun to Yoyo's chest, "Either way I'll have what I want, so you might as well let yourself live a few minutes longer." Yoyo, stony faced, reached with some difficulty into his pocket where the riddle was. If that's what Hayashi wanted, it's what he'll get. Yoyo handed it to him and Hayashi snatched it from him, skimming through the paper. He glowered at him, "Is this some sort of joke?"

"It's what got us this far." answered Rhyth quietly. "You lot are useless." Hayashi fumed, crunching the paper in his hand, "Take them to the top!" he ordered, pointing to the waterfall. The four were taken brutally to the top of the water fall. One officer slipped and fell into the falls below; he did not float back up. "You win a lot if you lose some." said Hayashi, not at all affected.

Beat shook his head poorly as he thought about how sick this cop was. The captain pointed at him and nodded his head, "Lose'm" Beat stepped back, but was pushed forward as he struggled to get away. Two of the officers grabbed him and held him while they rolled him to the edge of the cliff. "Should we remove the cuffs, sir?" asked one.

"Hm…they _are_ new cuffs…but he might be able to swim. No. Keep them on for all of them." he answered, awaiting the event. The rest watched in horror as Beat was kicked off the edge and into the rushing waters below. His scream echoed throughout the walls of the cave. "Music to my ears." smiled Hayashi, looking at the three that were left. "So, who's lucky number two?"

He walked in front of each, toying with them. "Something's different about you…" he said to Yoyo, receiving a glare. "But I don't care! I'll never see you again!" he laughed.

"Hmm…you look hurt already! You should watch the rest of your friend's deaths, then you can have your own." he told Gum as she sniffed silently. His walk stopped at Rhyth and she looked to the floor, angry at him. "What a lovely sight…" he breathed, eyes shining. The muscles in her face tightened, disgusted at what she was hearing. He continued, "Where would one get something as dazzling as these?"

She glanced up at him, wondering what he was talking about. Her eyes traveled to what he was staring at. It was her necklace, shining ever so stunningly in the light. "Where did you get this?" he asked, pointing to it. Rhyth stared down, not answering. "I asked you a question, I suggest you answer it before you won't be able to." he stiffened, crossing his arms.

"I don't know…" she replied softly.

He raised his gun and clicked the charger back. "Wait!" opened up Yoyo, watching Hayashi's moves. "I found it…"

Hayashi's frown curled into a smile, "Really…where?"

A small plan cracked within Yoyo's mind as he answered. "I'll tell you if you let them go." he said, looking at Rhyth and Gum. If they got out safely, at least someone will win. He didn't want an intent replay of Beat's fate. "Do you think me stupid?" responded Hayashi, laughing. "Well, if you can't solve a simple riddle…" started Yoyo, receiving fearful stares from the other officers.

"Oh and you can?"

"I've been."

Hayashi gave this some thought while glancing at the girls. "Plus, I know where the rest is." said Yoyo with a grin, looking at Rhyth's necklace. "Why don't you tell me where it is, or I'll blow your smug little head to smithereens." ordered the captain, his facial features standing out like a skeleton's. Yoyo raised an eyebrow, "If you kill me, you'll never know where it is."

"And if you kill them, I'll never tell you." he added, looking at the girls. Hayashi's expression became tired and bored as he snapped his fingers, knowing he had lost. The girls' handcuffs were removed, but they were still surrounded. "I said if you let them go!" growled Yoyo. "I did. They are no longer under any restrains, now it's your turn to keep your end of the bargain." responded Hayashi, voice hinting annoyance.

&&&

Yoyo trudged through the muddy grounds, sullen faced. He was in the front and the girls were in the back, being followed by the police like children being led to the principal's office. "Damn fool…" thought Yoyo grimly, looking forward.

What Yoyo would do to take back this entire adventure they had had. He only wished they were all back at the garage, filling boxes and throwing out junk. No, that's what got them into this mess in the first place. It was that stupid eviction notice. And the fault of whoever sent it.

It wasn't to far now. "Are we there yet?" whined one of the officers immaturely. "Almost." called back Yoyo, rolling his eyes. Ahead of them was a muddy/rocky terrain which had a tunnel in the center of it. Yoyo entered it and waited for the rest to follow. They stopped and stared back at him. "Waddya waiting for?" he asked.

"Something's not right." answered Hayashi, glaring around. Yoyo shook his head and continued, "Whatever." They quickly caught up and entered in a large room filled with more wine racks like the teens had entered into before. This was a hallway lead on to another wider and danker room.

Everyone's eyes glistened at the sight of the stony cliffs, reaching out with jagged fingers, calling out to offer easy deaths. "The rest is up there." Yoyo pointed with his cuffed hands at the steepest edge. "And how did you manage to get up there?" asked Hayashi, doubt in his voice. "I fell through some trap in the floor and went down this slide thing. Landed me at the top." Yoyo answered.

"And you got down how?"

"Climbed and fell into that small pond right there."

Hayashi glanced at the round hole with water. There were skate marks near them. Approving that the boy was telling the truth, he ordered for his men to start climbing to the top. Yoyo began to back away slowly, bumping into an officer. "Where do you think you're going?" Hayashi asked, turning. "Uhhh…heheh…" Yoyo grinned sheepishly.

Rhyth and Gum were both grabbed by their arms and twisted to not move. "Now that we're here, no point in having you all free now, is there?" smiled Hayashi. Yoyo thought over and over why he gave a fraction of his trust to this maniac. "Besides, it's not as if you had a home to go to." he added quietly.

"How do you know about that?" asked Gum from the back. "_I_ suggested the idea!" he laughed, shaking his head. "We needed more money, businesses need more buildings, and the police force needs to lock you all up! Knowing that you have no ally gangs just helps the cause. You don't have anywhere to go, which means you'll be all on the streets where I can get you. How else do you think we get paid? By your taxes?" he finished, watching two of the men successfully reach the top.

"You bastard!" she snarled, pulling at the grasp of the officer. "Now, now! Respect your elders." smirked Hayashi, shining his gun on his pants.

"Sir!"

Hayashi's attention sped to the calling officer, "What?!" The officer nodded, a sure sign of what they were looking for had been found. Hayashi ran over to the bottom, "Well, don't bob your head there like an idiot! Bring it down!" In all the excitement, Hayashi forgot about the captives for a minute, naming himself of all the glory. Looking around, his smile quickly disappeared, "Where are they?!"

&&&

"Geez, I never realized how long that walk was!" hissed Rhyth, scurrying away from the cavern.

"I know! It feels like forever! And we have to get back to the waterfall!" explained Gum, "That's the only way outta here!"

"Yeah…do we have a quick five minutes to get these off me?!" cried out Yoyo, racing as best he could wearing the handcuffs.

"No time! They're not _that_ stupid. They're probably on our tails right now and we're unarmed!" Gum rejected, glancing back.

Heavy, trudging stomps were heard, echoing all around. Gum stared straight ahead and increased her speed, "Faster!" At the word, all three raced for their lives, one tripping and losing balance, falling into the dirt. "Yoyo!" Gum began to help him up but he shook his head excitedly, "No! Keep going! I got an idea!"

"You're nuts!" she said, and continued on. Rhyth had enough trust in her friend to heed his order. Yoyo's eyes scanned from the floor to the walls and studied them for the few seconds he had. Shadows and noise suddenly surrounded the area. "Wait for it…" he whispered to himself, hand on the ground.

"There he is!" shouted Hayashi, pointing at Yoyo with his gun. Yoyo immediately closed his fingers into a fist and pulled. The string he had grabbed snapped and a deafening rumble filled the cave. Yoyo shot off as a pendulum knife came forth, swinging at the police and blocking their way off.

Hayashi, who was inches from it, was on the free side as the others remained trapped. "Little demon…" he sighed, rubbing his head as he walked on, leaving the calling officers stuck on the opposite side.

&&&

Rhyth bit her nail as she waited with Gum for Yoyo to meet them. "You think something happened?" she asked nervously. "You worry too much. I'm sure he's fine, he knows what he was doing." reassured Gum, not so sure of her own answer. Rhyth glanced at her nail, now much shorter than her other nails, and sighed. She began biting her bottom lip in replacement and took a deep breath.

"He's fine." smiled Gum, standing. "How do you know?" whispered Rhyth timidly.

"He's skating over."

Rhyth glanced at where Gum was looking and smiled happily. Yoyo, staring at his cuffs, sat on a close by rock and frowned. He was suddenly wrapped and pulled into a quick hug, "Yoyo! How long could you take?"

"Yes, Yoyo. You were beginning to worry your girlfriend here." smiled Gum, crossing her arms. Rhyth flushed darkly and Yoyo looked at his cuffs. "Get 'em off!" he whined. "Does it look like we have anything to get them off with?" Gum glared, shaking her head.

"I believe I do."

The trio looked up, wide eyed. "How'd you…???" started Yoyo, tripping over his words. "Does it matter?" grinned Hayashi, cracking his neck. "I'm tired of you useless trash dirtying up the public walks of our city! You have no value of true society. You're just a bunch of outcasts. And that, can be done without."

Hayashi could get away with murder, and they all knew it. The government was a twisted system, and Hayashi was a feeder of it. He raised his beloved weapon and curled his mouth into a cruel smile. "I've waited a long time to do this."

"You'll have to wait a bit longer, buddy!"

A large rock flew from the side and cracked the captain on the side of his head. The gun flew out of his hands as he covered his face, blood trickling down from the gash he had across his head. "AHHHHHHHHHH!!!"

Three heads turned to the direction that the rock came from, awed expressions around. "Hey, I found you're shades at the bottom." their hero grinned, tossing the red rimmed glasses at Yoyo. "How the hell?!" screamed Gum, overly excited and joyous, throwing herself into his arms.

"I know how to pick hand locks. It's easy cake." he smiled, hugging Gum close, "We gotta get outta here before he…"

Hayashi stood up, scaring them all by his appearance. He was in need of surgical help. "Didn't you die?! I'll kill you again!" he screamed, lunging at Beat. A gunshot startled all of them, and they all looked up. "My gun!" Hayashi cried, reaching for it, but the holder was setting it defensively. "You hurt any of them, and I'll shoot." she said in a jittery, nervous fashion.

Hayashi grinned halfway, not sure of to believe her or not. "You think I don't know how to use this?" she asked, triggering the next round. No one moved. Hayashi didn't even breath. The other three crept around and walked calmly to the edge of the waterfall rocks as if it was something they did everyday.

Rhyth suddenly threw the gun into the rushing falls and raced off with the rest as the others had begun to climb. Hayashi chased after her, wanting to strangle her badly. He stopped in his tracks as Gum raised her fist and knocked one in his eye. Blinding him for the moment, they raced up the rocks, slipping and sliding as they went. "Watch out for the edge!" warned Beat, lifting Gum to the opening. Gum reached down to help Rhyth up and then Beat climbed up next.

"Hey! I can't get up! I still got these cuffs on!" yelled Yoyo, watching Hayashi, as blind as he was, stagger up the rocks after him. Beat reached down but, since Yoyo was short, he couldn't reach him. "Dude, jump!"

He did so, and almost went over the edge as his skates slipped on the wet surface. Screaming and cursing angrily, Hayashi charged at Yoyo, making him jump in surprise, allowing Beat to grab the chain of the cuffs and pull him up painfully. Hayashi continued on the wet rock and off the edge into the waterfall. The four of them watched as he plunged down the falls and into the river below.

Yoyo took a deep breath and threw himself back, extremely tired. Gum looked around, squinting at the sunlight being rained on her. She felt the warmth of the earth reach her, pumping her heart's blood throughout her body. "We're out!" she screamed happily, hugging Beat. "And you're alive…" she added, gazing into his face.

"Yeah." he answered with a smile, holding her in a grateful embrace. Rhyth stayed silent while she sat with her eyes closed, absorbing the sun's energy and the world around her. She opened one eye, "I need a shower."

"We all do." agreed Gum, raising an eyebrow with embarrassment. "Beat?" called Yoyo from the ground.

"Yeah?"

"Can you now please get these DAMN THINGS OFF ME?!"

All except Yoyo laughed at his frustration and even more when Beat answered, "I can't do it here, my last pin got dented with the ones I had on."

"Aw, great. I gotta walk around with these things on me."

"Well," Rhyth suggested, "if you use your imagination, they can be stylish bracelets?" Yoyo glared at her grimly, "Oh yeah, _imagination_ is what got us all here, remember?!" Rhyth shrugged, "Your imagination."

"Hey, Rhyth, did you really know how to use that gun?" asked Beat, still surprised at her threat. "Well, I do know how, but I couldn't set it off even if I wanted to. I just can't…" she said, glancing down and rubbing her elbow. She couldn't take a life. Not her. "I could just imagine Rhyth going nuts with that thing." grinned Yoyo, imitating someone crazy shooting at everything.

"I would not!" she defended, crossing her arms. "I know." he shrugged, still bothered by the cuffs. "Better get home." suggested Beat, starting to skate off with Gum. "Yeah can't wait!" agreed Yoyo, almost jumping. He started skating with Rhyth following close. He smiled as he felt her hiding in his shadow. Then something wasn't right. He turned, but no one was there.

"Rhyth?!"

He looked both ways, but she wasn't there. As he spun around to notify the others of her disappearance, she stood in front of him with a large smile. "Worried?" she asked sweetly. He shook his head, "Nah. You can take care of yourself." He waited for her to move and continue on, but she just stood there. He raised an eyebrow, "Are you gonna move or wh-!"

Rhyth snagged him into a hug and pushed him back, so he was leaning on her arm as she brushed his cheek and kissed him deeply. It was her dream kiss that she had saved for him ever since she started liking him. Yoyo felt his cheeks burn and his heart beat so fast he thought he was going through cardiac arrest. Soon enough, he could hear his heart pace pounding in his ears.

Rhyth slowly pulled away, smiling and giggling at his dumb struck expression. A slow smile began to form, but was quickly forced away. "What got into _you_?" he asked, rubbing his neck. Rhyth answered with a quiet smile. It was about time they caught up with their friends, hadn't been too far off watching them.

"He likes her, too." said Gum. "Oh yeah." nodded Beat. They waited for the two and made their way back to the garage.

* * *

**Author's Note**: Believe it or fricken not, this is NOT the last chapter, as long as it may be. There is still one more!!! (wide eyed ppl) Yup! Sorry for the long wait. Hope it was worth it!

-TSSC


	7. Time to Go

**Time to Go?**

The nightlight of the garage seemed so far away as the four skated closer and closer to it, feeling like miles. The well-known music filled their ears as well as their hearts as they pushed the last bits of energy out of themselves to race to the gates.

The gate creaked as they swung open and they rushed in. Familiar, but surprised faces stared at them as they collapsed on the couch. "Where've y'all been?" asked Boogie, skating to them. "Down the stairs…" started Beat, stretching. "Tunnels…" sighed Gum. "With the waterfall." breathed Rhyth, spinning her finger. Yoyo laid his head on the armrest and closed his eyes, "and…Hayashi…"

"Hayashi?" some of the listening gang responded. "What happened with Hayashi?" asked Corn, stepping up, but he received no answer for they had fallen asleep.

&&&

"So much for watching your figure, Gum."

"Shut up!"

"Oh Beat, that's mean!"

"You're not exactly eating in small proportions either, Rhyth."

The four fought over the pizzas that had been ordered just for them. They each piled their plates high and began eating, not caring how many. There was one left, Beat's favorite, pepperoni, and he wasn't going to let this one get taken. He reached for it, but so did Yoyo and they glared at each other. "It's mine!" yelled Yoyo, standing up. "Keep dreamin', fool!" Beat contradicted, also getting up.

The girls were still eating what they had, so they didn't bother, just watched. Rhyth reached over and received dirty looks from them both. "I'm just getting soda!" she said, glancing weakly at them. "You know, you could just slice it in half." suggested Gum, shrugging. This was going to get out of hand. "I'm _hungry_." answered Beat.

"Oh, yeah, after a pie and a half, who wouldn't be?" she edged sarcastically, twirling her hand, but Beat had no time for this. Beat sighed, "You can have it…"

Yoyo lifted an eyebrow suspiciously, "Why?"

"I'm sorta full. I just noticed."

"That's a load of-"

"Are you going to take it or not?!"

Yoyo glanced at the pizza and hummed a tune of whether or not he should take it. "Alright. Your loss." he said, snatching it.

Beat glanced at Rhyth who was looking back at him for the moment and grinned. "Oh, yeah. Forgot to tell you Yoyo. Rhyth's kinda shy in saying this, but she's wondering why you haven't returned some of that sugar she gave you earlier."

"WHAT?!"

Yoyo's face paled as he looked at her wide eyed, giving Beat the perfect opportunity to steal the slice from Yoyo's hands. Beat took his chance and laughed at Yoyo's surprised expression, "Hey, thanks!" The shorter boy glared at the other and rammed into him, knocking the pizza out of his hands and onto the floor. "Yoyo you idiot!" Beat complained, "Now no one gets it!"

The two looked at each other, "Mine!"

The girls stared as the two wrestled on the floor, still trying to win over the pizza that had fallen. "That's disgusting." Gum sighed, scrunching her nose at the thought. Rhyth's view impacted mentally. This might be the last time those two would fight there. The moving was creating a deep broken feeling within Rhyth, and she knew it. If they started packing again, she would break down.

As she went to rest her chin into her palm, she felt the necklace that she was still wearing. Her fingers ran over the jewelry and she smiled. Gum noticed this motion, "Where'd you get that?" Rhyth broke away from her daydream, "Yoyo found it and he gave it to me." Gum smiled smugly, "Well, I think there's another couple in this gang." Rhyth blushed lightly, "No…he doesn't like me that way…"

The other girl bit into the cheesy pizza and drank some of her soda. It was quite refreshing after all those hours without eating. "I think so. Why would he give you such an expensive gift?" "Well, we were…I was in kind of a bad mood and he wanted to cheer me-wait…say that again?" asked Rhyth, becoming jumpy. "Uh, I asked why he would get you such an expensive gift…" repeated Gum, a little thrown off.

The girl placed both hands on her cheeks and went into a thought mode. Her face scrunched up so her eyes were almost gone. "Rhyth?" Gum called confused, but was ignored for the moment. "If I sell this…it might get transported…" Rhyth thought continually.

"What's with Rhyth?" asked Beat, tired from the scrap. "I…don't know…" replied Gum, as confused as the boys were. Rhyth snapped out and came back to them, "If I sell this to one of those jewelers that travel, he might give American money…" she started. She turned to Yoyo and held onto his arms, "Please Yoyo? It's to save our home! Everyone's home!" His expression became blank, "I-It's your necklace Rhyth…"

"But I don't want you to be upset or anything."

"Nah."

She smiled brightly and unhooked the beautiful, shining piece of work. "It almost looks antique…" she added with a thought. Beat went to her, "I know where those dudes get off dock." "Let's go!" she skated with him carrying hope. "You think her idea will work?" asked Yoyo, watching them leave. The girl eating stopped and looked up. Rhyth had been through a lot, besides, she was determined. "I think she'll do good." answered Gum. Yoyo sat down and nodded. "So," started Gum, "Who ate the one that fell?"

&&&

It was foggy and cold, the docks. It was like an entirely different world than the Tokyo Rhyth and Beat knew. "Stay close, jewelry and food ain't the only things transported out of here." warned Beat in a raspy voice, watching his back. Seagulls cried out for food, eyeing the teenagers hungrily. Black water flowed under them on the wooden planks, splashing them every time a wave smacked against it. The air was filled with the salty sea moisture, so much, one could taste it.

Suddenly, boats appeared at the sides of the long docks, catching Rhyth by surprise because it was so hard to see. Boaters watched them with curiosity, wondering what two kids were doing there. "C'mon, this guy I know is near the end." said Beat, leading Rhyth away from the men. "Why were they all staring at us?" she whispered, watching the shacks come closer. Beat turned at the end of one broken down house, "They were staring at you. I doubt any girls come around here."

Rhyth cringed with slight disgust, "Ew."

Beat slowed in front of a run down warehouse. The smell reeked of fish and the windows were cracked as if someone had tried to escape, but never made it. Strange stains were smeared across some of them, frightening Rhyth, "Beat, are you sure about this…guy?"

"Yeah, he looks and sounds nuts, but he's got sense when it comes to money."

Beat banged on the door, ruining the silence of the creepy pier.

"I don't answer unless you ring the bell!"

The boy sighed and turned off the music to his headphones, "See what I mean?" Beat squinted as he glanced around, "There's no bell!"

"Then no one's home!"

Beat grinded his teeth angrily, "Look Spike, I don't have time for this crap! Open the damn door!"

"Sorry, please leave a message."

Rhyth rolled her eyes and crossed her arms behind her. While waiting, she noticed a tin cup-ish looking bowl resting on one of the window sills that showed her reflection. She left Beat to his frustration and picked it up. It rang with a gong bang and the door opened. Beat stared at her as she dropped it with an innocent smile.

An arm pulled him in roughly, "You brought visitors?!" the person hissed. "It's _her_ necklace she wants to sell." replied Beat, smacking the hand off his shirt. Rhyth followed Beat nervously. She obviously wasn't wanted around here. It was extremely dark inside, and the smell much stronger. "Geez, ever heard of an air freshener?" snorted Beat, trying to get used to the rot smell.

A rectangular light from above switched on, but it flickered with a buzz, revealing a skinner teenager. He was taller than Beat, with messy blond bed hair and icy blue eyes sending eerie chills down Rhyth's spine. He wasn't someone she would like to upset. He wore a white T-shirt and dark blue shorts. His skin was as pale as a corpse; Rhyth could tell he wasn't someone who spent much time outside, yet, he had black skates on. "Whatcha got?" he asked in an odd, raspy voice.

Rhyth pulled out the necklace and showed it to him, "I want to sell this for American money…" She glanced at him nervously, wondering what he could be thinking. To her surprise, he smiled. A small smile, but still one, none the less. "Haven't heard a soft voice like that in a long time." he told her, then took the necklace. He pulled up a chair for himself and held it to the light, examining it.

He muttered to himself some mental notes and squinted many times, figuring the perfection of it. "This thing is ancient. You go two blocks down. Called Trader's Inn. You ask for Louie and tell him it's from 1532. He'll give you fair deal." He gave it back to Rhyth evenly and walked them out. Beat turned around when he reached the door, "Thanks man, and take care of yourself, dude."

"Been doing, and don't leave her alone in that place. It won't be a pretty sight if you do." Spike informed them and he closed the door. "What happened to him?" asked Rhyth, watching her back even though it was only her and Beat skating down the planks. "He's got his own problems." sighed Beat, shaking his head. "But to stay _there_?" asked Rhyth with a worried face.

"He's been on the cop's top list for over a year now. He doesn't want to stay with anyone because of what happened a while back."

"…What happened?" whispered Rhyth, seeing the place Spike was talking about. It unquestionably looked like somewhere Rhyth wouldn't enter by herself. "He was like one of us, but a simple mistake had his best friend killed…he's wanted for thievery, holding up hostages, and he considers himself a murderer, even though it's the cops who shot his friend. Changed him permanently." Beat told her, not really wanting to say.

"Oh…" Rhyth said softly, feeling bad for him. "Here it is. Watch out and don't show that necklace until we find this guy." ordered Beat as they entered the dank store.

&&&

"How long could that take?"

"For the hundredth, _billionth_ time, I DON'T KNOW!"

"You're not much of a help."

"Then you should've gone with them!"

Yoyo stayed quiet as he thought this over. Rhyth and Beat had been gone over two hours. He wouldn't say he was worried, but he acted it. The GG dog, Potts, trotted over and sat by Yoyo's feet. He whined, pawing at Yoyo. Yoyo glanced down at him darkly, making Potts growl. Yoyo found this interesting, so his mind wandered off to the dog instead.

"I can't believe it! That thing was actually pricey!" grinned Beat as he entered the garage with Rhyth. "I know!" giggled Rhyth, "But we still need a few hundred…"

"At least we're making progress!"

They found everyone still packing. "Where've you two been?" asked Corn, throwing a box to the side. "Hang on Corn." Beat put him off, racing by him. They both reached where Yoyo and Potts were, "Hey! We only need a couple hundred!" Beat said happily. "Yeah!" agreed Rhyth with a smile. Gum smiled, but it quickly faded, "Where are we going to get the rest?"

"We'll have to brain storm on that, but hey! We're half way there." sighed Beat cheerfully. She nodded and smiled back. They might actually keep their home now. "We just need a super genius idea…" she joked, pointing to her head.

Rhyth sat on the couch, clutching the money with her life. Yoyo was on the floor, absorbed playing with some marbles. She decided to watch him, "Isn't that a two player game?"

Yoyo glanced at her, "Yeah, but these marbles suck. It's supposed to be certain colors and points and whatever, but they're all the same color! Both bags! What a waste…" He lifted a bag and spilled some out into his hand, "I mean what marbles are cream colored anyway?"

Rhyth tilted her head as she stared at the round orbs. "Yoyo…those aren't marbles."

"Well I coulda told you that." he snorted. "No!" she said excitedly, "They're pearls!" At the sound of the words, Beat and Gum hurried over, "What are you talking about?" Rhyth took the bag from Yoyo and showed them to Beat, "One more trip to the pier?" He grinned. Yoyo reached into his back pocket and gave her another bag, "I have two." She pulled him into a neck crunching hug, "Oh, thank you, Yoyo!" "No problem." he breathed from her choking embrace.

&&&

"Alright, what are you guys so happy about?" asked Corn, glancing at them. "Yeah, and what's with being all secretive? Ever since you four disappeared and reappeared, you four've been a little too close." added Cube, joining in.

"We just had some bonding time." shrugged Rhyth, stepping closer to Yoyo. "We need to finish up packing." said Corn, pointing at some empty boxes, "We don't have a lot of time left."

"We have all the time in the world." grinned Yoyo. "I think you've been breathing in your can's fumes." chuckled Boogie, leaning on a box. "Guys, we have some news for you." announced Beat, raising an arm. "We've gathered here today…" Yoyo started laughing and pushed him aside, "We don't gotta move!"

All the motion inside the garage froze and everyone stared at them. "Long story short, we got the money we need and some extra!" stated Rhyth, handing Corn an envelope filled with the money they needed to pay off the bill. Corn raised an eyebrow, thinking this was some horrible joke. He opened the flap to the envelope and checked inside.

Everyone gathered around him and waited for his response. "Start unpacking, we're stayin' home." he smiled as everyone cheered. Gum pulled Beat close and smiled, happy to be home. They inched near each other and slowly it developed into a kiss. Rhyth gazed at them happily and quickly looked at Yoyo who was watching her cautiously. She took a step towards him and he took a step back.

"What's the matter?" she asked, taking another step. "Nothing. What? I can't have a little space?" he replied, smiling weakly. Rhyth stopped and placed her hands behind her, watching Yoyo with interest. "Could you stop staring at me like that?" he muttered with a light blush. She sat on the couch quietly and he followed. "Okay, now what did I do?" he sighed, taking the seat next to her. "Nothing. I'm just wondering…" she started, but didn't finish.

"C'mon, Rhyth let it out." he said in a chant, bobbing his head. "Don't worry," she said, getting up, "I'm just thinking about the future."

"The future? Why?"

"Well, it can be altered in different ways. It just ends up right either way as long as we're here, right?" she smiled, "We, of all people, should know that." The girl ruffled his hair and gave him a hug around his neck, making him smile. "Yeah," he responded, pulling her over, "Looks that way."

Cube skated over, "Aww. Would you look at this Kodak moment." Yoyo rolled his eyes, "What's going on?" Cube smiled, "We're adding another wing with the extra cash." Rhyth giggled, "That's great!" and turned to Yoyo. He seemed upset. "What's the matter?" she asked.

"Why don't we get a huge flat screen?!"

"Because you'd dominate it!"

"Duh!"

"Well that's not exactly fair!"

"Well, who exactly found the pearls?"

"Someone who thought they were sucky marbles!"

Cube turned and skated away from the argument. "What a perfect couple." she joked, watching them from the other side of the garage as the argument ended up in a tickle fight. The entire garage was at a homey peace, and it was going to stay that way for a long time.

* * *

**Author's Note**: I tried making it more interesting, fuller, and longer for a last chapter to end off a good story. I hope you guys enjoyed and check out my other stories. I'm always working on a new one. Heheh. (waves and light dims into darkness) 


End file.
